OdishaPlus Bureau
Free Robotic Physiotherapy Services for all and artificial limbs for the weaker sections across 7 Western Odisha Districts
“I had to leave for work at 10 o’clock that night. I suddenly fainted and fell off my bed in the evening. I was taken to Rajgangpur Hospital and then to VIMSAR Burla. A few days later, I realized that I was paralyzed. However, with regular robotics physiotherapy at Advanced Rehabilitation Centre Sundargarh, my life is now close to normal”, says Udit Chandra Naik (66) of Kendupara near Sundargarh Town.
Mr. Naik had a stroke on the evening of June 20, 2006. “My left arm and leg were paralyzed. Even though it took me about a year to get mobility back, I had difficulties in managing things on my own. I never expected to lead a normal life again. But regular robotic physiotherapy at the Advanced Rehabilitation Center in Sundargarh has greatly improved my condition.”
After many years of being in the same condition, Udit saw a ray of hope in the form of Advanced Rehabilitation Centre set up by District Administration Sundargarh. The ARC provides free robotics physiotherapy services to all. He has thanked the state government and district administration Sundargarh for this.
“When he came here, we checked his legs and hands. We diagnosed that the nerve endings and muscles of his hands and legs have become weak. Robotics physiotherapy was started for his lower limbs while specific exercises were done for his hands. In a few weeks, he started showing improvement. Now he is able to do his daily work,” says Dr. Pritam Kumar Bisi, Physiotherapist at ARC Sundargarh.
Many others like Udit Chandra Naik have been able to return to a life of normalcy after undergoing robotic physiotherapy at Advanced Rehabilitation Center in Sundargarh. Set up at District Headquarters Hospital with the financial support of District Mineral Foundation (DMF) Sundargarh, the center is run under the aegis of Department of Social Security and Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities, Government of Odisha.
ARC Sundargarh provides free modern robotic physiotherapy services to individuals suffering from brain stroke, spinal injury, cerebral palsy and accident related trauma. CAD/CAM based advanced artificial limbs are designed and provided to beneficiaries free of cost. Those PwDs whose annual income is less than 2, 40, 000, BPL card holders, ration card holders and PwD pension holders are eligible for free prosthetics and assistive devices through the ARC.
Operational from June 2020, the Advanced Rehabilitation Center Sundargarh serves beneficiaries from seven districts of western Odisha, namely Sundargarh, Jharsuguda, Sambalpur, Balangir, Deogarh, Bargarh and Kalahandi.
The state government has made provision to identify the PwD beneficiaries across the 7 districts through the District Social Security Officer (DSSO) & Block Social Security Officer (BSSO) of those districts who can be served through ARC Sundargarh for free.
As of October 2021, ARC Sundargarh has provided 256 people with artificial limbs. A total of 2,842 robotic physiotherapy sessions have been conducted for 188 beneficiaries. Consequently, rehabilitation of the differently abled, has been made possible thus connecting them to the mainstream of society. Many people are able to pursue their livelihood once again and living a close to normal life, all thanks to Advanced Rehabilitation Centre.