Dr Chaitanya Buch. / LinkedIn/Dr Chaitanya Buch

Indians who have left their homeland and migrated to the United States have “India in their heart”, said Dr Chaitanya Buch, the executive director at WHEELS Global Foundation. These Indians, he said, have a large contribution in the US, but at the same time, they also remember to reinvest or help their brothers, sisters and parents back in India.

In an interview with New India Abroad, Dr Buch highlighted the significant contributions of the Indian diaspora in America noting that there are 270,000 Indian students and numerous engineers who have driven innovation. Indians own 60 percent of motels in the US and have contributed $700 billion, accounting for 6 percent of the US's tax revenue.
 

Speaking about the work of the WHEELS Global Foundation that he is associated with, Dr Buch explained that WHEELS stands for Water, Health, Energy, Education, Livelihood, and Sustainability.

“Our job is to be a hub for being able to provide the benefits of the technological innovations done by various engineers and innovators all over the world and apply them to different parts of geography, society, financial strata and help them get rid of the unhealthy lifestyles,” he explained.

Dr Buch also explained that the WHEELS Global Foundation was established by pan-IITians settled in the US, inspired by the advice of former President APJ Abdul Kalam, also known as the Rocket Man of India. President Kalam encouraged IITians to leverage their technological expertise to assist society and patients, leading to the creation of the foundation, he said.

Role of Indian-Americans in India’s health sector

Dr Buch noted that Indian-American doctors are quite influential and have made significant contributions, as documented in the Indiaspora Impact Report titled ‘Small Community, Big Contributions, Boundless Horizons.’

“We already have so many ongoing programs and we can have a bilateral exchange and education for not only like we are doing for the patients, but even for the doctors,” he said.

Dr Buch highlighted that American doctors could benefit from learning about Asian medicine, which is patient-centric, while Indian doctors could gain insights from technological advances made by IITians and other professionals. He suggested that this exchange could be facilitated through electronic and internet mediums, including IoT devices.

“I know at least five universities in the US who have been in touch with India to improve the situation there. So, everyone gains from others' experience,” he shared.

Dr Buch emphasized that relying solely on textual knowledge can be limiting. He noted that patients with congestive heart failure in the US are often prescribed more diuretics due to their air-conditioned environments and naturally lower temperatures.

“In India, the same patient may require less diuretic and we should not be following the American dose because we perspire a lot. A minimum of 500 ml is lost due to environmental changes,” he said.

It is essential to consider geography, genetics, and the availability of facilities when determining treatments, he stressed.

Dr Buch highlighted the relevance of bilateral exchange in understanding and compensating for these differences, leading to a healthier and more enjoyable life for patients. He also mentioned that the US could learn cost-cutting measures from India and how to methodically maintain and secure healthcare records, adhering to HIPAA and other regulations.

“I think together as a team we can win because a team in my mind together everyone achieves more,” he emphasized.

Innovative healthcare solutions by WHEELS Foundation

Dr Buch stated that the WHEELS Foundation aims to serve as a hub to promote and make health accessible and affordable, using spoken tutorials to educate individuals. “We have had the first village in Maharashtra where newborn malnutrition has been entirely eliminated. And we are offering this to millions of people in Madhya Pradesh,” he said.

He also noted that technology is not always necessary for impactful health interventions. In Gujarat, for example, sevaks working in 33 districts, who are 10th or 12th standard students, engage with the community by asking simple questions about the diseases they suffer from. This grassroots approach has been effective in addressing health concerns at the local level, he said.

The WHEELS Foundation, through its scientific and research committee, collaborates with IIT alumni settled across America for several decades. “They all are not only contributing their knowledge and money but are also working free of cost for non-profit purposes and any innovation that happens, we try and implement that,” he said.

Dr Buch emphasized that the foundation adopts innovations such as utilizing basic video technology, similar to that used in teleconferencing, to enhance healthcare accessibility. For instance, they employ dental video cameras to facilitate remote diagnosis, prescription, and treatment planning for patients in regions spanning from Delhi to Rajasthan, improving access to dental care that was previously challenging to obtain.

Dr Buch stated that their ongoing work involves training 10,000 teachers and 5,000 schools in India on mental health, with a focus on integrating expertise in Indian ancient science. “We recognize that current paradigms and treatment protocols in mental health may not always align with individual cultures and can seem foreign to many parts of the world,” he said.