Binaytara Foundation
The Binaytara Foundation was established in 2007 by Dr. Binay Shah and wife Tara Shah with the goal of promoting health and education in underprivileged societies. The BTF is a Washington State nonprofit organization exempt from taxation pursuant to Section 501 of the Internal Revenue Code. At the 37th plenary meeting held July 18, 2013, the United Nations Economic and Social Council decided to grant special consultative status to the BTF. The ECOSOC grants special consultative status to NGOs that are concerned specifically with only a few of the fields of activity covered in ECOSOC and bears special competence in that field. BTF has founded multiple programs in underdeveloped and developing countries to improve access to healthcare. Recent accomplishments include developing home hospice and palliative care in India and Nepal, and the first bone marrow transplant center in Nepal.
Current projects
Binaytara Foundation Cancer Center: The Binaytara Foundation opened the Binaytara Foundation Cancer Center on Dec. 17, 2018, in Janakpur in Nepal. It is the first cancer center in the region, and will provide cutting-edge treatment to patients while also serving as a hub for research and education. The center was desperately needed in the region, with the nearest cancer center a full day's drive away in Kathmandu. It will be the only public state-of-the-art cancer center in Nepal's Province No. 2, which is the most densely populated province in the country. The center serves a population area of about 15 million, including those from neighboring provinces and India.B.P. Koirala Institute Partnership: The Binaytara Foundation in December 2018 signed a memorandum of understanding with B.P. Koirala Institute of Health Sciences to support the development of cancer and palliative care services at the prestigious medical school located in Dharan, Nepal. BPKIHS is one of the largest and most renowned medical schools in the country, yet currently lacks oncology and palliative care services. The Binaytara Foundation will assist BPKIHS in establishing these programs in several ways, such as by providing training, establishing committees, developing standards of care, and setting up clinical trials. and most well renowned medical schools in the country, yet currently lacks oncology and palliative care services. The Binaytara Foundation will assist BPKIHS in establishing these programs in several ways, such as by providing training, establishing committees, developing standards of care, and setting up clinical trials.
Nepal Hospice and Palliative Care Partnership: In partnership with local physicians and healthcare organizations, BTF helps start home hospice programs in Nepal. The goal of this program is to create hospice and palliative care services in Nepali communities where access to healthcare is limited. Nepali physicians and healthcare organizations who qualify for partnership receive various forms of support from BTF. Currently, one partnership exist in Janakpur, Nepal. Applications for partnership are available on the BTF website. Eligible applicants must have an active license to practice medicine in Nepal, a personal vehicle, and a computer with internet access. Healthcare organizations can also apply.
India Hospice and Palliative Care Program: BTF in partnership with the government of Madhya Pradesh in India to establish hospice and palliative care programs in all of the state's 51 districts. To accomplish this, BTF in 2018 established the state's first hospice and palliative care training center at Ujjain District Hospital in Madhya Pradesh. Along with providing hospice and palliative care services, the center provides training to nurses and physicians to learn those types of services and create their own programs throughout the region. The partnership with Madhya Pradesh started in November 2016. Dr. C. M. Tripathi is the lead physician for the program working at Ujjain District Hospital. He completed training in Boise, Idaho, at Horizon Home Health and Hospice.
The International Conference on Advances in Hematology and Oncology : ICAHO is an annual conference for medial professionals generally held in August of each year in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. The conference's aim is to improve the care of hematology and oncology patients by providing attendees with new updates in the field. There are opportunities provided to submit research abstracts, with accepted abstracts appearing in the Anticancer Research Journal. Recent hashtags for the ICAHO conferences include #ICAHO2017 and #ICAHO2018. The conference agenda is geared toward the following:
- Hematologists
- Medical Oncologists
- Radiation Oncologists
- Surgeons
- Primary Care Providers
- Oncology Nurses
- Pharmacists
- Basic Science Researchers
- Other healthcare professionals involved in the management of cancer patients.
Northwest Cancer Summit: BTF hosts periodic free public meetings in Northwest Washington designed to educate cancer patients. The summits, called Northwest Cancer Summit: Empowering Patients and Demystifying Cancer, facilitate discussion among cancer patients, their family members, caregivers, healthcare professionals and other experts to help. Summits are held periodically within Whatcom and Skagit Counties of Washington. Speakers and topics vary by event.
Northwest Cancer Climb: This annual fundraising event takes participants with hiking to the top of Oyster Dome, a trail near Bellingham, Wash. Registered participants receive a free t-shirt and are also entered to win prizes upon reaches the summit. Proceeds benefit BTF's programs.
Past projects
Medical Conferences: As part of expanding the horizon in hematology and medical oncology, BTF organizes annual medical conferences in different countries including the U.S. and Nepal. BTF organized two hematology conferences in the fall of 2013. Updates in Hematologic Malignancies was a multidisciplinary conference held in Lewiston, Idaho, targeting the needs of the healthcare providers involved in the care of cancer patients. The International Conference on Advances in Hematologic Malignancies was the first hematology conference organized in Nepal. Famous Bollywood actress Manisha Koirala was the chief guest at the conference in Nepal.Medical Research Grant: With the overview of exploring the medical sciences and evidence-based practice where financial barriers restrict them, BTF awarded grants for medical research in underdeveloped and developing nations including Nepal and India. The program started in 2008 and was awarded every year until 2015.
Cervical Cancer Screening: BTF partnered with Cancer Care Nepal to develop a screening program for low- and middle-income women ages 30 to 60 who live in the rural and suburban areas of Kathmandu and Lalitpur Districts, Nepal. The cervical cancer screening program was conducted over a six-month period starting in May 2014. More than 1,000 women were screened for cervical cancer.
BTF Telemedicine Project: Using wireless video consultation, experts from the U.S. volunteered in weekly telemedicine session with physicians in Manipal College of Medical Sciences in Pokhara, Nepal, between March 2010 and March 2012.
BTF Scholarship: The first project was launched March 31, 2007, when BTF distributed uniforms and stationeries to 33 underprivileged students of Yog Kumar Secondary School, Blaba- Sarpallo, Mahottari, Nepal. BTF scholarships were also provided to 44 school children in 2008.
BTF-UIC Telelecture Series: The university and BTF conducted a specialty telemedicine review course in hematological malignancies to provide physicians from developing countries with information on recent advances in management.
Bone Marrow Transplant Center: The bone marrow transplant program is a joint venture between BTF, UIC Center for Global Health, University of Illinois Hospital and Health Sciences System, and the Civil Service Hospital. They have partnered in a project to develop the first Blood and Marrow Stem Cell Transplant Center in Nepal. BTF provided financial support for the training of two physicians and a nurse from Nepal at the UIC Medical Center Chicago for this project. BTF also supported the training of one physician in clinical genetics.