Support Trina Talukdar's Cause - Donate To UMMEED

One in eight children in India in the age group of 2–9 years has a developmental disability such as cerebral palsy, hearing impairment, speech and language disorders, autism spectrum disorders, intellectual disability, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, learning disorders, and others. This extrapolates to over 50 million children with or at risk of disabilities in India, with over 650,000 in Mumbai alone.

In India, children with and at risk of disabilities are typically not identified early, don’t receive early and appropriate intervention, and their voices (and those of their families) are not heard. Interventions tend to focus on making the child “normal” and “fixing deficits” rather than “building on their strengths” and supporting what the child needs to “participate in life" like all children. Children with disabilities are significantly more likely to be out of school, have mental health challenges, be bullied, and have poorer life outcomes.

Ummeed, meaning ‘hope,’ was established in 2001 by Dr. Vibha Krishnamurthy, a developmental pediatrician, with the vision of helping children with and at risk of developmental disabilities reach their full potential and be included in society.

The 55 Km Walk for UMMEED 2023

Since 2011, every January, Ummeed organizes a 55 Km Walk on the beaches of South Goa (this time, onJanuary 21, 2023). The idea is to get together many enthusiastic and engaged people to help spreadawareness about the cause of children with developmental disabilities and raise funds for Ummeed.

Raising funds for Ummeed this year is even more crucial than in previous years, because overall funding (such as through CSR) has taken a huge hit. It, therefore, becomes imperative for us as concerned individuals to do our bit and support this cause. Remember that children with disabilities, especially those from poor socioeconomic backgrounds, are amongst the most vulnerable, and often invisible of all.

Why does UMMEED need your support?

Ummeed is one of a handful of organizations in India offering quality clinical services to children and families with developmental disabilities at affordable costs – based on the income and circumstances of the family. No child or family is ever denied services at Ummeed.

Ummeed trains professionals – doctors, therapists, teachers, community health workers, caregivers – to identify developmental disabilities early and intervene appropriately across India. Ummeed does not charge any fees for its training programs thereby making them accessible to all, including those from low resource settings who cannot afford to pay fees but need the training and capacity building.

Ummeed creates opportunities to amplify the voices of people with lived experiences, platforms where children, young adults, and families can speak up and participate in their own care.

During the COVID-19 crisis, the team at Ummeed quickly adapted their intervention model to an online virtual format, ensuring that services continued uninterrupted while keeping in mind the safety of its children, families, and trainees. Ummeed also provided COVID vaccination support to families who did not have the means and resources to avail them.

As a not-for-profit organization, Ummeed relies heavily on funding from individuals and organizations to carry forward its clinical, training & capacity building, research, awareness & advocacy activities as well as fund new / pilot initiatives and support the work of its shared services teams such as IT, HR, admin, and finance.

It is my challenge not only to Walk up to 55 Km but also to raise money to support Ummeed. Your contribution will directly impact Ummeed's work and thus children and families experiencing disabilities.

What do you get in return?

• The joy of making a difference to the quality of life of a child and family experiencing a developmental disability.
• The satisfaction of contributing to a cause that supports some of the most vulnerable children around us.
• A tax exemption receipt (India and USA).
• And of course, the joy of helping me reach my goal of raising Rs. 2,00,000.00 for UMMEED!

Do also talk to your friends and family about my campaign to help me raise more funds. And please share my campaign link on your social media pages to spread the word!

The UMMEED Model

Ummeed provides family-centered, evidence-based care to children with developmental disabilities so that they can reach their full potential and be included in society.

The Ummeed team comprises over 110 passionate staff members that include medical professionals, education professionals, community workers, caregivers, management, and support staff.  Ummeed is committed to diversity-equity-inclusion within and outside its workspace. Its programs directly or indirectly serve children and families from underprivileged / low resource contexts (e.g., about 75% of the families taking clinical services at Ummeed receive financial concessions; its training programs cover NGO staff working in remote parts of the country; many of its awareness initiatives are in local languages to reach the most vulnerable).  

1. Clinical Services: Offering clinical services (diagnosis and therapy) to children with developmental disabilities. Ummeed also runs an early intervention center to help young children with disabilities get school ready, and a family resource center where families can offer peer-support to other families.

2. Training Services: Building a wide community of trained doctors, therapists, teachers, and community workers who can promote child-development, pick-up delays and disabilities early, and intervene effectively. Ummeed has now started collaborating with universities to offer formal pre-service and in-service training courses, internships and observerships. In parallel to seeding skilled resources in different parts of the country, Ummeed is also exploring how to bring like-minded trainees in specific geographies together to collectively bring about ecosystem-level change.

3. Research: Engaging in research pertinent to the field of child development and disabilities in India. Ummeed’s work has been published in reputed peer-reviewed journals such as Lancet Global Health, Acta Pediatrica, and others; its team presents regularly at national and international fora.

4. Awareness & Advocacy: Creating awareness about developmental disabilities and inclusion through social media, print media, and other formats. Ummeed enables the voices of children and families, aims to change attitudes and mindsets, and advocates for inclusive schools, communities – to achieve its dream of making inclusive India a reality.

UMMEED’s Impact

At the core of Ummeed’s work are children with and at risk of developmental disabilities. Ummeed supports them directly through its clinical services as well as indirectly through its training and advocacy work.

A summary of Ummeed’s reach to-date amongst the stakeholders it works with (including FY 2021-22):

• Every year, Ummeed supports ~1100 children and families through ~10,000 sessions across services such as developmental pediatrician assessments, occupational therapy, physical therapy, autism intervention, speech therapy, mental health services, social work services, and others. Till date, Ummeed has directly worked with over 12,500 children and their families.
   
• In FY 21-22, Ummeed supported 1140 children through 11,927 clinical sessions. About 88% of Ummeed’s clinical sessions are offered with concessions availed by 75% of families belonging to lower socioeconomic strata.
• In FY 21-22, Ummeed trained over 2400 medical professionals (doctors, therapists), school staff (teachers, special educators), community workers, and caregivers from diverse contexts. Till date, Ummeed has trained over 6,000 professionals from all except two states of India, indirectly reaching about 3,50,000 children and families.
• Ummeed’s model of bringing in ecosystem level change (strategic and operational support to partner organizations beyond training programs) is being tested in Jalgaon, Hyderabad, and Guwahati and will be explored in Pune in the coming year.
• Over 8,30,000 people reached through awareness and advocacy campaigns.

Thank you in advance from the entire team at Ummeed!  You can also reach out to us on info@ummeed.org for further information.

We look forward to your support 

Here's a quick update