Set up in 1991 in Mumbai, Anusandhan Trust was established with the intention of democratically managing institutions that would: (i) undertake research on health and allied themes, (ii) provide education and training, and (iii) advocate the well-being of the disadvantaged and the poor.
Anusandhan Trust governs two institutes:
- Centre for Enquiry into Health and Allied Themes (CEHAT)
- Support for Advocacy and Training in Health Initiatives (SATHI)
Started in 1994, Mumbai-based CEHAT focuses on public health research and policy advocacy. In particular, it has pioneered the establishment of two healthcare models that respond to violence against women:
- Dilaasa, a hospital-based crisis centre that works with women facing domestic violence
- A comprehensive healthcare response to survivors of sexual violence that has been operationalized across five public hospitals in Mumbai.
CEHAT also carries out capacity-building workshops nationally to equip healthcare professionals to respond sensitively and holistically to women survivors of violence.
If CEHAT is the research centre of Anusandhan Trust, Pune-based SATHI is the action centre. It has been involved primarily in public actionsand campaigns related to health. It has also undertaken work at the community level in Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh, besides also facilitating national-level campaigns on the right to health.
Whatever form its interventions take, Anusandhan Trust has consistently striven to make healthcare systems accountable and accessible to the people they serve.
To read a Q&A with the co-ordinator of Anusandhan Trust's CEHAT initiative, click here.