GRANT PROPOSALS
A grant proposal should include the following elements (Figure 32):
Cover letter
An introduction to the organization requesting the grant
A summary of the proposal
A summary of any previous communications with the funding organization
The amount of funding you are requesting
The population that will be served by the grant
The need the project will help solve
Cover page
Grant proposal title
Submitted to: (funding organization’s name)
Date
Your contact information including name, title, organization, address, phone, and email
Proposal report
The content and format, varying depending on the requirements of the funding organization
A basic grant proposal should include the following sections:
Project abstract or summary—a concise summary of the project that is no longer than one page. Write this section of the proposal last.
Need for the project
Population served
Brief description of the project
Goals and objectives of the project
Applicant’s history
How the program will be evaluated
Statement of need
Description of the problem
Description of the population
Description of how the project will help solve the problem
Goals and objectives
Program description
Explanation of the program
Details on how the program will be implemented
Explanation of what will be accomplished
Timeline, the schedule for project implementation
Evaluation—information on how the success of the project will be measured
Organization and staff information
Description of the organization’s experience
Staff qualifications
Budget—a summary of the expenses for the project
Appendix
Research support
Nonprofit tax status letter
Annual report
(Courtesy of Isha Foundation)
ACTION FOR RURAL REJUVENATION
Submitted to: XYZ Foundation
October 10, 2014
Name
Isha Foundation
Address
Phone
The Isha Foundation’s Action for Rural Rejuvenation (ARR) initiative is a multi-pronged, multi-phased, holistic, outreach program whose primary objective is to improve the overall health and quality of life of the rural poor of India. ARR is a unique, well-defined philanthropic effort, which enhances existing development schemes by supporting indigenous models of health, prevention and community participatory governance, while offering primary health care services and allopathic treatment through its dedicated team of qualified and trained personnel.
At present, nearly 750,000 people in rural Tamil Nadu, India are served by Isha’s ARR project. ARR features Mobile Health Clinics (MHC), which are able to traverse hard-to-reach regions and effectively operate in resource-poor environments.
In addition to medical services for existing conditions, the staff on the MHCs offers preventive health care services in the form of yoga classes and provides sporting equipment to encourage physical activity.
II. Statement of Need
Currently, ARR operates nine MHCs and provides services to 143,000 patients in 280 villages each year. Of these patients, 67,000 are elderly people, 87,000 are women, and 21,000 are children. Over 50% of the MHC patients suffer from chronic ailments such as ulcers, musculoskeletal disorders, hypertension, depression, and respiratory disorders including asthma.
On average, each new MHC that is deployed can provide services for over 17,000 patients each year. Because rural children with conjunctivitis often scratch their eyes resulting in blindness, each MHC can provide timely medical services to over 2600 children each year.
III. Goals and Objectives
This project was launched in August 2003, under the aegis of Isha Foundation. The project aims to benefit 70 million rural people in 54,000 villages in Tamil Nadu, South India. It will be implemented in two phases over a period of 15 years. Thereafter, it is envisaged that local communities will sustain the project activities independently.
The goals of Phase One include:
Ensuring access to essential medical care by running mobile health clinics and distributing medicines free of cost
Rejuvenating traditional well-being tools by introducing basic yogic practices
Developing a sense of community involvement and joy by conducting games and inter-village tournaments
Introducing the use of home remedies and herbs for cost effective and healthy living by providing free training and developing model herbal gardens
Bringing awareness on preventive health, sanitation, and environmental conservation by conducting specially designed awareness programs
Sustaining further development of the program by creating a local volunteer base
The goals of Phase Two of the project include building Rural Development Centers which will include a village library, computer center, yoga center, gymnasium, pharmacy, health clinic, and volleyball court. Phase Two will also include setting up contemporary crafts training and production units for economic development.
ARR plans to launch 59 MHCs in the next three years, and 150 before the end of 2013. Since Rural Development Centers (RDC) that are built in the second phase of the project will comprise a health clinic and pharmacy, the MHCs of the areas covered by these centers will be redirected to other regions. In villages where RDCs are not established or are remote, the MHC service will be sustained.
IV. Project Design and Implementation Plan
Central to the ARR project are the Mobile Health Clinics. These overcome two major barriers to appeasing existing illnesses: cost—by offering free examination and treatment; and access—by bringing the medical team to the rural people. The MHCs are specially designed vehicles built on a conventional truck chassis incorporating all the built-in features of a clinic. They are outfitted with all common diagnostic equipment, a clinical laboratory, pharmacy, and an independent power and water supply. They are equipped so doctors can perform surgical treatments such as abscess draining, suturing, dressing, and childbirths. Immunizations for malaria and other diseases are provided. Whenever more complex care is needed, free medical examination and treatment or discounted fees and payment plans are negotiated at partnering local hospitals.
Each MHC includes a qualified allopathic physician, a trained nurse, two trained assistants and a pharmacist. The physicians are additionally trained in indigenous systems of healing. Prior to fieldwork, the MHC staff undergoes an intense training process including an orientation to working in resource-poor environments and guidance on how to effectively reach out and build rapport with the community in which they work.
In order to allow for maximal utilization of MHCs, standardized protocols have been implemented, including procedures for setup, data entry, and designations of roles and responsibilities of the staff. Apart from providing medical services, the MHC staff integrates with the local community. They share meals and reside in the homes of local villagers. Through these personal interactions, the MHC staff is better equipped to understand the needs and requirements of the local community. Furthermore, through these intimate interactions, they are able to ensure reciprocal dialogue with the community, mobilize support and by their example, inspire villagers to take responsibility for community health and well-being.
V. Timeline
Upon the funding of this grant request, a mobile health clinic can be purchased and equipped within three weeks. It can be on the road serving villages within one month.
Initially, a maximum of two villages are serviced daily by one MHC in order to assure adequate introductory and screening measures. Subsequently, a routine schedule is adopted during which each MHC typically services 4-5 villages daily, repeating these visits to each village on a fortnightly basis. Typically, one MHC serves 60-75 villages twice a month. Each clinic is in operation 24 days a month.
VI. Evaluation
The staff on each MHC maintains patient records, so the outcome of the project is easily measured in terms of number of patients served, the types of medical conditions treated, as well as demographic breakdown by age and sex.
For each MHC deployed, our target is to service 20,000 patients each year with a service area of approximately 60 rural villages.
Established in 1992, Isha Foundation is an international public service organization, founded by Jaggi Vasudev, dedicated to the enhancement of physical, mental and inner well-being of all people. Isha seeks to bring peace, inner balance and joy through the science of yoga and to relieve human suffering through a variety of initiatives on the individual, community and international level. Isha Foundation is a non-religious, non-political, non-sectarian organization with over 250,000 active volunteers worldwide.
Isha Foundation has over 150 centers in India and other parts of the world including the United States, Canada, Lebanon, Cyprus, France, and Germany. Based in Coimbatore, India, the foundation manages 87 centers in Tamil Nadu alone.
Isha is a predominantly volunteer-run organization. People who have been in some way touched and inspired by Isha Foundation comprise the volunteer base. Coming from all walks of life and all parts of the world, their quality of being dedicated, disciplined, and wanting to reach out is what is common across the organization.
Over the past 14 years, Isha Foundation has successfully carried out several social outreach programs for rural people, as well as disadvantaged and often neglected segments of society, throughout Tamil Nadu, thereby gaining a reputable and trustworthy standing among the people throughout India.
In addition to the selfless dedication of its volunteers, ARR is fueled and supported through its extensive partnerships with renowned national and international organizations, medical centers, and administrative centers, such as the Times Foundation, the Ramakrishna Hospitals, the Masonic Medical Center, the Kovai Medical Center Hospital, the KG Hospitals, the ELGI Group of Companies, and Shambhavi Trust, just to name a few. As part of their commitment to Action for Rural Rejuvenation, these organizations have pledged free and subsidized medical treatment to patients referred by the project, sponsored the design, construction or provision of the mobile health clinics and offered assistance of their own medical teams to go on rotation on the MHCs, among many other pledges.
We are seeking funding for:
One Mobile Health Clinic (MHC) Truck
Purchasing one additional MHC will allow Action for Rural Rejuvenation to serve up to 60 additional villages and as many 20,000 new patients the first year.
The cost for purchasing a MHC is $29,070.
While we can seek funding from other sources for the operating costs, the budget to operate the MCH for one year is an additional $17,442.
IX. Appendix
Attached are letters of support from our support organizations, such as the Times Foundation and the Kovia Medical Center Hospital, as well as our tax exempt status letter from the Internal Revenue Service.