Sachin Jindal

Managing Director and Sr Technology Delivery Lead, Advanced Technology Centers in India, Accenture

We went through some of the toughest months this April and May when the second wave of COVID-19 struck India. It’s the same for everybody—we all know of a family, friend or colleague who lost someone or was in pain. Many of us had to struggle to get a hospital bed, oxygen and medicines. It was a nightmare.

At Accenture, we’re working to ensure that we don’t have to go through such a crisis again. Through our collaboration with cricketer Yuvraj Singh’s Foundation YouWeCan (YWC), we’re doing our bit to give a much-needed boost to our overburdened healthcare system. Yes, together we’re on a mission! #Mission1000Beds to rapidly scale up critical care facilities across India and strengthen the capacity of the government, Army, autonomous and charitable hospitals—to fight COVID-19 and meet other future critical care requirements.

Giving the healthcare system a boost

Working together with YouWeCan, we have already added 120 critical care unit (CCU) beds at Government Medical College & General Hospital in Nizamabad, Telangana; 50 each in Srinagar and Dibrugarh. Accenture has also funded a variety of medical equipment such as BiPAP machines, ICU ventilators, patient monitors, crash carts and oxygen cylinders for the hospital. I was fortunate enough to be part of the Accenture team that rolled out this initiative along with YouWeCan. The dedication and professionalism shown by YWC has been exceptional throughout the process; from proposal to delivery of the promise. Their experience in healthcare relief is noteworthy.

Helping India fight COVID-19

For us at Accenture, the goal is clear: Save lives and support the healthcare system. Our pandemic relief efforts in India are aimed at helping us achieve this goal. Working with our partners such as YouWeCan and other NGOs, we’re augmenting the capacity of existing hospitals by setting up oxygen plants as well as enhancing emergency and critical care units. Another area of focus is to reduce strain on the healthcare ecosystem by providing COVID-19 support kits and personal protective equipment (PPE) kits to frontline healthcare workers. We are working with partners to extend food and home care kits to the unemployed and vulnerable groups. Through all this, protecting our people and communities has been our constant focus. And what better way to beat the virus than through vaccination! So, Accenture has been working with the government to support vaccination camps. Apart from sponsoring vaccination drives in over 100 cities across the country for our people and their families, we have also been running campaigns to address vaccine hesitancy and targeted drives for hard-to-reach segments, including migrants, persons with disabilities and the elderly.

If the pandemic has taught us anything, it’s that no one country, government or agency can fight a crisis of this magnitude alone. Whether it’s getting medical aid where it is needed the most, innovating on vaccines, or sharing know-how and strategies to deal with the pandemic, we all need to work together to get through this. Collaborations like those of Accenture and YouWeCan matter now more than ever to help us build resilience and save lives.

Images from Assam Medical College in Dibrugarh where 50 CCU’s units were installed as a part of YouWeCan’s partnership with Accenture