This is the story of AD who was told that she had a heart ailment, and unless she spent Rs.5 lakhs her life would be in danger. Today Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Medical Sciences has through CRT-P, supported by Boston Scientific Inc. USA, given her hope, and a fresh lease of life.
It all started for AD with pain in the lower limbs and decided to consult a physician. A neurologist she consulted, besides throwing light on her lower limbs pain, also informed her that she may have a heart problem. An ECG was immediately done which threw up the alarming fact that her heart was enlarged. This shattered AD and her husband, who was a contractor earning around INR.15,000 (US$230) in the remote district of Purulia in West Bengal. On enquiry they discovered that they would have to spend a lot of money on the treatment.
Not knowing what to do and with no one to help them the family silently suffered. AD used to get breathless and very tired frequently. When they consulted the physician again after a few days, fearing her condition may have worsened, the doctor put her on medication and told her that she has to undergo a ‘surgery’ – that is, she has to be put on a pacemaker – which will cost Rs.5 lakhs (US$7,700), a far cry for someone whose income was just 3% of this amount!
Once again she delayed the surgery because she had no money. Years went by when suddenly one day a person who was working with her husband told him that he got his mother in law treated in Bengaluru at Sri Sathya Sai Hospital. “Why don’t you take her there?” he suggested. They had no idea about Sathya Sai Hospital in Bengaluru; the thought that they could even go to a distant south Indian city to get treatment for her heart ailment was beyond their wildest imagination. Moreover when her husband’s friend told them that within 15 days of his visit his mother in law was treated, and that too free of cost, they just could not believe it. “Could it really be true?” they wondered.
Knowing that there was no other option AD decided to travel to Bengaluru with her husband to Sathya Sai Hospital. On March 13, 2017 they came hoping all that the friend had told them would come true in their case too.
Today, exactly 10 days after AD underwent the ‘surgery’ her husband is a happy man, and AD feels as if she has got a new life to live. “Before the surgery I did not think I would live,” she says, and adds not because she was scared of her ailment but simply because the cost of the surgery was unaffordable.
“The doctors, nurses, technicians are all very cooperative and attend to my needs very well,” she says with tears of gratitude. Now, she says, her life’s mission is to spread the good word about Sathya Sai Hospital, so that nobody who has any ailment is depressed or lose hope in life.
“This is not a hospital, in fact it does not look like a hospital at all; it looks like a Devaalaya,” she concludes with folded hands, verily testimony to the fact that this is a Divine Place of Healing.

(As told to Sri. Venkatraman, a Sevadal Volunteer and written by Mrs. Sheela Sai Prasad)

Note to the Reader:
In a normal human being the pumping efficiency of the heart is around 70% but in these cases it could range from 5% to 30%. These devices increase the pumping efficiency of the heart removing all the associated problems due to low pumping efficiency.