Our Focus

CREST (Caring, Research, Education, Scholarship and Training) was established in 2006 with the goal to assist underprivileged people in developing communities.

One such community is in Mangalore, India where one of the first projects supported by CREST - a fully functional hospice care center for terminally ill cancer patients - has been built and being operated.

CREST is fully committed in supporting the Center for Development Studies and Education (CEDSE) as they expand their current welfare programs to other areas of care to meet the community's growing needs.

Our Programs

Ave Maria Palliative Care

This hospice was established to provide free care to terminally ill cancer patients. The hospice care center has a capacity of fifteen patient rooms and is in operation for the last four years. A dedicated team of health care professionals assist cancer patients in the last stage of their life and provide relief to the family members from the emotional stress. As of Nov 2013, about 220 patients have undergone terminal care at this facility.

Long Term: Holistic Healing

As part of the holistic healing goals, the CEDSE in partnership with CREST plans to establish a center for alternative/holistic healing through yoga and meditation. The techniques include Yoga, Pranayama, NLP and Vipassana. The goal is to train people to explore the potential of mind-body-spirit and attain increased awareness, self-control and have a balanced approach in facing life-situations. It has been proven that a pure mind is essential to prevent physical ailments and cure disease.

Childhood Cancer Foundation

Increasing number of children are affected by the painful disease of cancer. This initiative is to assist children diagnosed with cancer especially from the economically backward sections of the society with all the four areas: Prevention, Diagnosis, Treatment, and Cure. The initial focus of this program is to identify eligible pediatric patients in and around Mangalore, provide assistance through charitable/governmental outreach programs or direct financial assistance and follow-thru with the treatment until cure.

Sampoorna: Guidance and Counseling

The counseling program provides specialized mental health services for adults, families and care givers. The goal is also to provide community outreach, prevention and care coordination especially to victims of social/domestic abuse, trauma, sickness and separation. The counseling program is staffed by nuns and lay counselors who have extensive training in clinical psychology and capable of treating those with relatively minor behavioral problems to individuals requiring intensive interventions.

Hospice Care

Ave Maria Palliative Care

Most people hope to die at home, peacefully in their sleep but due to life-threatening illnesses like cancer, kidney failure, liver failure, dementia or respiratory diseases, this hope does not become a reality for many. The final stages of such debilitating conditions pose multiple challenges for patients and their families. In addition to the physical discomforts such as excruciating pain, open wounds, nausea, vomiting, breathlessness, sleep problems and so on, the patients as well as their families often struggle with psychological and spiritual issues.

Caring for someone with a terminal illness requires a combination of compassion and competence. For example, when the cancer is eating away at the impacted organs and there is seepage from lesions that do not heal easily, it becomes a challenge for the family. Patients require professional wound care and constant monitoring for pain and other symptoms which is not possible in home settings. A hospice with its multidisciplinary low-tech, high touch approach becomes an ideal abode of caring and compassion for such patients and families.

Guided by divine providence and inspired by hands-on experience, Dr. Lavina Noronha, Prof. Rita Noronha, Prof. Clement D'Souza and Mr. Harold Naveen D'Souza joined hands to respond to the growing need for palliative care services in the community which culminated in the establishment of Ave Maria Palliative Care in 2007. We are thankful to the selfless sacrifices of nurses and caregivers who have been able to provide 24x7 care and comfort to patients in their final days of life.

Amenities

A two-story building in a serene and scenic location in Vamanjoor, overlooking the city of Mangalore and the Arabian sea
Fifteen double occupancy bedrooms with attached bath and balcony
Fully equipped kitchen, laundry room, conference room and chapel
Fully staffed 24x7 nursing station
Mortuary unit and power generators
Trained doctors/nurses and nurses' training programs

Childhood Cancer Foundation

Objectives

Ensure that the child victims of cancer from the marginalized of groups get essential treatment (assistance for blood transfusion, bone marrow transplant, essential nutrients)
Provide continuation of treatment and follow-up for child patients identified or treated under this program.
Provide childcare/school support services for other siblings when adults attend to the child patients in the family.
Study the prevalence and adequacy of health services (public and private – available in the urban and rural areas of the district to reach out to the child victim and build linkages with Oncology specialists in Mangalore region.
Facilitate the provision of supportive benefits (material and psychological guidance and direction of care) and tap government schemes available to them to combat the disease.
Undertake campaigns to facilitate early detection and treatment of cancer among the children.
To build web/internet presence for collaborative interventions and social campaigns and to drive awareness of the cause.

Accomplishments

Established MoU with Oncology departments of three major hospitals, Wenlock Hospital, KMC Attavar and Fr. Muller's Hospital, in Mangalore to support children diagnosed with cancer
Primary support for supply of chemo medications and medical supplies that are not covered by the government. We also assist with blood supply, providing travel and accommodation assistance for patients coming for chemotherapy and radiation treatments
In addition to the direct assistance to patients, our support extends to immediate family members like assisting patients sibling for school, financial assistance for parents travel and accommodation, providing lost wages for child's patients who primarily are day laborers
Regular follow-up with family members who often try to avoid returning to complete full treatment cycle. This has been most effective for children who have had better prognosis for cure
Cancer awareness outreach programs - working to create support centers at local village community (Gram panchayat) level
Research of the cause of cancer and identify the pattern of the decease from various geographies. Survey the rural areas and prepare a database of pediatric patients below poverty line(BPL)

The Impact - Pediatric Patients at the Government Wenlock Hospital, Mangalore

We are teaming with Dr B Shantaram Baliga, Head of Regional Advanced Pediatric Care Centre (RAPCC) of the Government Wenlock Hospital, Mangalore and Dr. Ravi Kiran, Dept. of Oncology, to expand our services.

The program has had a direct impact on the pediatric patients and is becoming popular in Mangalore.
There has been zero mortality among children covered in the program during last year.
The number of children coming for treatment has significantly increased (instead of 2-3 beds occupancy, now the wards are filled with 12-15 pediatric patients).
Children who have been admitted to NIMHANS Bangalore and other places are being brought by their parents to the oncology unit of Wenlock, Mangalore.