This July InshaAllah I'll be volunteering in Bangladesh with a charity called Selfless. The aim of the project is to provide innovative and sustainable healthcare initiatives in rural Bangladesh to meet basic health needs of the local population. I will be working alongside local doctors in health camps- assisting in clinics and treating patients with much needed free medications and educating local healthcare professionals about disease prevention and health promotion. Selfless are more than just a charity who are there to be a good samaritan for a couple of weeks in a year. They are a charity which strive to empower the local population and produce sustainable health projects to improve health to enable better livelihoods for the people of Bangladesh. Being of Bangladeshi ethnicity myself and growing up in the UK I am able to appreciate how lucky I am to have the NHS and not have to worry about access to a doctor or a hospital or paying for medications which is a sad reality for a large population of Bangladesh. Therefore due to my heritage and being in a position of influence as a doctor, I feel it is only right that I do the utmost I can to help reduce health inequalities in my parent country and Selfless will hopefully facilitate me in this.

Selfless have already established some incredible projects:

'Upahar' Baby bundles - in the UK, every mother with a newborn baby is given a free 'Bounty pack' of essentials and information by healthcare professionals to support them begin their journey into parenthood. In Bangladesh, this isn't the case. Selfless' Upahar project provides baby
bundles to parents and their newborns allowing them the best possible start.

‘porishkar' eye project- Bangladesh has one of the highest rates of ocular morbidity in the world. 800,000 people are blind in Bangladesh, with
70-80% caused by treatable cataract. Selfless set up a low-cost initiative for identifying those with cataracts in eye camps. People are screened, those with cataracts are identified and taken via bus to a dedicated eye hospital in Sylhet to undergo low-cost cataract surgery. The total cost of diagnosis, treatment and post-operative care is only £30!

'A brush with kindness' - educates children in Bangladesh about the importance of good oral hygiene. The team demonstrate good teeth brushing technique and provide children with biodegradable toothbrushes and information.

Any donation would be much appreciated, thank you/jazakAllah khair.