Zero Project Innovative Practice 2018 on Accessibility

Zero Project Innovative Practice 2018 on Accessibility Providing free adaptations and prosthetics for amputees and persons with mobility issues

India – Jaipur Foot Organization – BMVSS

Summary: The Jaipur Foot Organization – BMVSS (Bhagwan Mahaveer Viklang Sahayata Samiti) is an NGO headquartered in Jaipur, India, with 23 branches across the county. It is one of the world’s largest organizations providing free prosthetic aids and appliances, having grown from providing 59 artificial limbs in 1975 to serving some 60,000 people with disabilities annually. BMVSS provides artificial limbs, calipers, wheelchairs, tricycles, and even economic assistance to the user’s doorstep, particularly in rural areas in India as well as in 27 other countries.

Problems Targeted: Persons with physical disabilities in the rural areas of low-income countries are often unable to access assistive aids either because they cannot travel to a hospital, which are mostly found in cities, or because they cannot afford the expensive assistive solutions.

Solution, Innovation, and Impact: The Jaipur Foot Organization identifies persons with mobility problems, with particular focus on poor amputees from rural areas. The organization provides a variety of assistance, such as artificial limbs, calipers, wheelchairs, and tricycles – all free of charge and delivered directly to the user. In addition, the organization holds over 50 field camps per year in India and around the world, whereby doctors and technicians travel with equipment and materials to provide on- the-spot fabrication and the fitting of prosthetic limbs and other aids to persons who may otherwise be unable to access help.

The organization has also designed its own prosthetic limbs, including the “Jaipur Foot” and the “Jaipur Knee” – hailed by Time magazine as one of the 50 best inventions for the world in 2009). These are affordable, high-performance, and robust alternatives to expensive assistive aids previously in use. The Jaipur Foot is an inexpensive, water-resistant, and quick to fit below-knee prosthetic. The Jaipur Knee is a nylon artificial knee joint developed in partnership with Stanford University that mimics the normal human walking pattern. Between 50,000 and 75,000 supportive aids are fitted or provided each year to persons with mobility problems. Outlook, Transferability, and Funding: Since its start in India, the organization now has facilities in Afghanistan, Colombia, Fiji, Mauritius, Pakistan, and the Philippines. In addition, Jaipur Foot has set up independent artificial limb fitting centres in Asia, Africa, and Latin America.

Jaipur Foot is a non-profit organization funded largely by donations from private companies, banks, and individuals, plus funding from the Indian Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment under the ADIP Scheme (Assistance to Disabled Persons for the Purchase and Fitting of Aids and Appliances), which aims to assist persons with disabilities in procuring appropriate modern aids and appliances to assist their physical, social, and psychological well-being.

About the Practice at a Glance: Name of Innovative Practice: Providing free adaptations and prosthetics for amputees and persons with locomotor disabilities in low income countries

Organization: Jaipur Foot Organization – BMVSS

Country of Implementation: India

Facts and Figures: Prosthetics are provided free of charge.

The organization specifically targets the poor living in rural areas.

Some 60,000 persons with mobility issues are served each year.

Contact: Pooja Mukul [email protected] http://jaipurfoot.org/

Links and Further Reading: Jaipur Foot Website

Youtube Video – Jaipur Foot

YouTube video – Nagpur Camp of Jaipur Foot

Quote:

“When I lost my leg, I felt that my life was over. The Jaipur Foot has not just replaced my lost leg, it has given me my life back.” —Mr. Sanjay Gupta, a Jaipur Foot Organization – BMVSS beneficiary