CCC was founded by Jetha Devapura and was first registered as ‘Care for Cancer Children’ in May 2003 to assist children suffering with cancer at the National Cancer Institute Maharagama (NCI) in Sri Lanka.
CCC is a not for profit charitable organisation based in Australia and Sri Lanka to provide as-sistance to the sick and underprivileged through the help of its partners and supporters. ‘CCC’ stands for Courage, Compassion and Commitment – the three key values of the organisation.
The CCC has previously funded part of the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), set up counselling rooms, fitted antibacterial hand gel solution in the wards, donated cancer books recommended by RCH staff to the medical library, and funded the first visit of Dr Keith Waters, a senior consultant oncologist from the Children’s Cancer Centre at the RCH to Maharagama who facilitated training in best practice.
The biggest achivement of the CCC thus far was the construction of a 14-bed ward that provides valuable bed space for those children sleeping on the floor due to lack of bed space at the Cancer Hospital.
CCC House
The CCC House is CCC’s most ambitious and much needed project to provide a 140-bed transit home for underprivileged outpatients and their carers. The CCC House will be built inside the premises of the Maharagama Hospital and will provide a comfortable environment for treatment and recovery. It will also ease the over crowding burden on the medical staff so they could give greater focus to new and critical patients.
The Ministry of Health in Sri Lanka has donated the land to build the CCC House inside the premises of the Maharagama hospital. The estimated cost is Rs 175 mn and it is hoped to call upon the generosity of the public and the corporate world in meeting this target.
A transit home improves the quality of care to inpatients. Furthermore, these transit homes also remove outpatients from a hospital environment to a more homely, less intimidating environment.
Those considering donating and being a part of this noble initiative can choose to either sponsor a room, cubicle, or contribute towards fixtures or fittings.
Commenting on this project, Kanishka Karunaratne, Director of the National Cancer Institute said, “This type of accommodation is ideal for patients undergoing radiotherapy and day chemotherapy. The CCC House will also improve the psycho-social environment for the outpatient.”
For more information on how to donate and get involved,s e-mail: info@cccfoundation.org.au or visit the CCC at www.cccfoundation.org.au
