Improving access to health care does not always begin in hospitals or clinics. In many communities, it starts in living rooms and kitchens, through trusted relationships and local leadership that bring care directly to families.
Last week, the Shah Family Foundation had the opportunity to welcome Annie Wang, Head of Global Health at Opportunity International, to Baylis Medical Technologies. Her visit offered staff a powerful, firsthand look into what community-based health care truly looks like on the ground. Through stories from rural India, Annie painted a vivid picture of how local women, equipped with training, tools, and trust, are transforming health outcomes in their villages. Her remarks deeply resonated with employees, inspiring meaningful dialogue around equity, prevention, and the role of community inbuilding resilient health systems.
The Shah Family Foundation is proud to support Opportunity International Canada through a $300,000 commitment over three years, advancing a community-based health initiative in India that empowers women as Community Health Leaders. This program addresses critical gaps in primary health care by training local women to provide basic medical guidance, increase health literacy, facilitate teleconsultations, and connect families to essential services and government supports.
To date, 250 Community Health Leaders have been trained, each operating a Health Resource Centre within their own home, ensuring care is accessible, familiar, and trusted. Through these centres, communities can access health information, referrals, insurance products, and seasonal health guidance. Collectively, the program has reached 376,500 individuals, with nine out of ten served coming from the most marginalized populations.
Beyond delivering care, these women are becoming anchors of resilience within their communities. By building trust and improving knowledge around maternal health, reproductive health, and disease prevention, they are helping families reduce health risks before they become crises. At the same time, the model creates income-generating opportunities for women, strengthening both health and economic stability at the household level.
At the Shah Family Foundation, improving access to health care means investing in solutions that are locally led, preventative in nature, and designed for long-term impact. Through its partnership with Opportunity International Canada, the Foundation is proud to support a model that places women at the centre of care and brings health services closer to those who need them most, creating healthier, more resilient communities across India.
