Ford: Agent of Global Change & Health Care Help

Ford empowers women and saves lives in rural India through new technology and Ford’s SUV capabilities

Henry Ford had a vision. He believed that vehicles, like his Model T, would improve lives by having the ability to have greater mobility. More than 100 years later, that vision has spanned the globe and Ford is now a global agent for change.

Thanks to new technology and Ford’s SUV capabilities, women and their new children have a better chance at getting the proper medical assistance and information during their pregnancies and childbirth (if required).  Ford has been working with public and private organizations on a pilot program designed to bring the right healthcare to the women and children living in an inaccessible part of rural India.

Sustainable Urban Mobility with Uncompromised Rural Reach, known as SUMURR, enabled childbirth for 41 women with high-risk mothers pregnancies, visited 54 villages, and reached more than 3,100 people to facilitate community awareness programs focused on maternal and child healthcare.

One key was for SUMURR to be successful and reach these remote areas, was the Ford Endeavour. It is an SUV designed to handle the rough terrain of the region and powered by some of Ford’s most advanced technologies, which extended the physical reach of the healthcare services.

Mageswari, 19, was one of the women who benefited from this program. She lives in Kodamaathi, a very small village in rural India where Ford concluded the nine-month pilot program that helped pregnant women overcome their geographical and technological barriers that prevented them from receiving adequate health care.

After arriving in rural areas, healthcare professionals utilized their laptops and cell phones to connect with doctors and medical assistance in ways they never have before. The results… SUMURR helped make a safe childbirth possible for 41 pregnant women like Mageswari, who – with the help of the Ford Endeavour – was able to make it to the hospital in just enough time to give birth. “If not for Ford Endeavour, I might have tried to reach the hospital in a two-wheeler,” she says. “I do not know what might have happened.”

The area of Kalvarayan Hills has a higher infant and maternity mortality rate compared with most other pockets of Tamil Nadu, which is a key indicator of the great need for prenatal care in that area.

Click above on the video to see the SUMMURR story or click here to read the full story from Ford and how they are helping make healthcare available to all corners of the globe.