Volunteer Program In India Read reports from volunteers about their experiences by clicking here The Christian Medical College in Vellore, India (CMC) is a major college and teaching hospital in South India which welcomes health professionals from around the world as volunteers . What each volunteer can do will vary with the needs of the hospital and college and the level of expertise offered. CMC is on the cutting edge of medicine in India with a number of firsts from the first open heart surgery and first kidney transplant in India to the first to find HIV in an Indian and to introduce routine blood screening for the virus in India. CMC is also recognized for its research, and five of the 11 Indian labs named as Centers of Excellence by the Indian Council of Medical Research are at CMC in Vellore. Its Community Health programs, CHAD, RUSHA, and CONCH are internationally renowned. Considering its goal for excellence in its mission to provide the best possible care to the disabled, the disadvantaged and those least able to afford quality care, particularly women and children, CMC is especially interested in health care professionals who can offer a high level of expertise and have a genuine desire to make a contribution to the truly needy and less fortunate. As a major hospital and medical college, there are possibilities in all areas of health care. The program, however,  is a strictly volunteer one in which the volunteer pays all his/her own costs including transportation to and from Vellore,   lodging and living expenses.  (Relatively inexpensive lodging is usually available on campus.) The Vellore Foundation helps expedite the program for volunteers from North America by providing information and communications between the volunteer and CMC staff. Volunteers in the U.K. should contact the U.K. Friends of Vellore, while those in Australia can contact the Australian Friends of Vellore Volunteers in other parts of the world can contact CMC/Vellore directly. Those North Americans interested in volunteering should write the U.S. Foundation detailing their professional background (send a C.V.), and indicate, in a covering letter, what they would like to do at CMC, when they would like to go and for how long. Volunteers can go for any length of time from a few days for a highly specialized lecture or help in some procedure to several months. Generally, because of visa restrictions, the longest period is six months. The government of India does not encourage hands on practice of medicine by non-nationals, especially those physicians who are "tourists." Medical registration (licensure) is generally not being granted to visitors or tourists . . . this is not a problem for most other health professionals. Volunteers can contribute in a wide variety of fulfilling and valuable ways including doctors who can participate in rounds and clinics, see patients and advise on care, give lectures, and participate in seminars. Once the U.S. Foundation office receives information from the potential volunteer, it sends it to CMC where the staff in the appropriate department is brought into the process, evaluating the need and the volunteer's potential contribution. The staff then considers the mutual benefits of the potential experience for both the department and the volunteer, the activity in the department at that time and whether housing is available. The staff then extends an invitation to the volunteer if and when it determines that the experience is a viable, feasible one. If you would like to volunteer, or would like further information about the program, you can e-mail us at usafoundation@vellorecmc.org Please be sure to include your postal address or write our New York office. If interested, we can also put you in contact with a number of former volunteers who can tell you more about the experience on a first hand basis. If you contact the Vellore Foundation office we'll try to connect you with someone in your discipline who has been to CMC/Vellore for more personal information. The office also has a number of books about CMC's history, its mission, and the people who have been associated with it. There are many ways to contribute.   This photograph is by volunteer Marge Gieser who was able to contribute her talent as an  artist  at CMC by painting murals in the Children's' Ward.  Mrs. Gieser accompanied her husband, Dr. Richard Gieser, an ophthalmologist who volunteered at the Eye Hospital. So, while volunteers to CMC Vellore are mainly health care professionals, there non-medical professionals who find other ways to contribute to the work there.   Health Volunteers Overseas (HVO), which sends volunteers to many places around the globe,  has an ongoing program with the Christian Medical College, Vellore, sponsoring volunteers to CMC in the fields of Dentistry, Oral Maxillofacial Surgery, and Anesthesia.  The HVO program primarily focuses on education and training at CMC. Volunteers serve for two to four weeks.