Project Karuna

Project Karuna is a newly formed OCIP focused on improving the health of Soliga tribal communities in Biligiriranga (BR) Hills, Karnataka, India. We used to work with Hanoi Medical University in Vietnam for community-based Chronic Kidney Disease research and health promotion activities in 2022-2025. Since June 2025, our project has shifted focus, partnering with the NGO Vivekananda Girijana Kalyana Kendra (VGKK). We aim to increase health literacy in underserved communities in BR Hills via health education efforts to empower key figures in each tribal hamlet to improve their community’s health. Additionally, we will also be participating in health screenings with VGKK to identify health issues, including genetic haematological diseases, as early as possible within these tribal communities. Combined, our main objective is to improve the overall wellbeing of these populations while enabling them to make better health decisions. We are mentored by LKCMedicine’s renal module lead, Professor Manohar Bairy.

As an OCIP, our core revolves around two main goals –– health education and health screenings –– while learning more about the unique rural healthcare demographic and systems of BR Hills.

Local Efforts

Under the guidance of our mentor Professor Bairy, we have shadowed the multidisciplinary team in charge of the outpatient haemodialysis centre at Ang Mo Kio Thye Hua Kwan Hospital to better understand the management of patients with end-stage renal disease in Singapore.

Overseas Partnerships

Our overseas partner, VGKK, is a highly respected NGO founded in 1981 that aims to improve the health and livelihood of remote tribal people in the southern Karnataka region. VGKK operates a Tribal Health Centre (Outpatient Department) supported by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, a Mobile Health Unit to reach the Soliga tribal people, and a Tribal Health Resource Centre to promote community-based health research and training.

With VGKK, we will have the opportunity to learn from the patient treatment and management at the Outpatient Department and its Addiction Clinic, participate in home visits for stable patients, and visit a rural hemodialysis centre. Notable endemic diseases in the BR Hills area include G6PD, sickle cell disease, and beta thalassemia.

Health Education

We aim to conduct health education fairs for both individual tribal hamlets (located in the BR Hills wilderness) and the local student and adult populations to raise awareness about common health issues specific to the region. This includes anemia, sickle cell disease, beta thalassemia, substance abuse, and mental health issues. Additionally, as a long term goal, we aim to identify and conduct targeted training for community health leaders in each tribal hamlet to allow them to proactively manage their own community’s health.

Health Screenings

VGKK conducts regular health screenings for individual tribal hamlets and the local student population via a mobile health unit and weekly school health screenings, respectively. We aim to support their operations by providing additional hands, addressing the shortage of clinical staff, enabling them to reach a broader patient base. At the same time, this will serve as a valuable learning opportunity for us to better understand the unique health demographics of these communities and identify potential gaps in the system that we can help address. Students will be able to perform point-of-care tests like urine dipstick, ECG, and capillary glucose measurement.