Rumah Sehat Madani (RSM) arose out Bali's Muslim community and our primary goal is to serve disadvantaged members of that community. We never turn anyone away on the basis of religious faith, but we do operate with the needs of our target community in mind.As Muslims, we place a great deal of importance on privacy and physical modesty. Many non-Muslims feel the same way, especially regarding birth. At RSM we respect the right of all mothers to determine who will be present when they give birth, how they want to birth and whether an intervention or procedure is to be accepted or not.
We respect the needs of Muslims, by respecting the needs of mothers and families. By placing those needs at the centre of our approach to healthcare, we provide a service that is compassionate and empowering to Muslims and non-Muslims alike.
About ninety percent of Bali's population identifies as Hindu, but small Muslim communities have lived here for over two hundred years. These days, Bali's Muslim community also consists of many recent arrivals from other islands within Indonesia, who are rarely connected to the networks of community support that are available to local people.
Poverty in Bali
Although tourism and related industries have made Bali one of Indonesia's wealthier provinces, poverty is still an important issue here-
- More than 20% of children under five are under-nourished or severely malnourished
- The Indonesian government estimates the minimum living requirement in Bali to Rp704,000 (about US$70) per month.
- A survey conducted by our parent organization found that more than half of the people in the community we serve earn less than Rp200,000 (about US$20) per month.
Qualifying for free healthcare
Layan Kesehatan Madani (LKM), our partner-clinic, conducts surveys to assess people's eligibility for free health-care from both RSM and LKM. The results of the surveys are checked by LKM staff who visit the homes of all applicants who meet our criteria.
Acceptance into the program is based entirely on the need of the applicant and their dependants. There are several criteria including income, family-size, living arrangements and nutrition. Many successful applicants support families on incomes of less one US dollar per family-member per day.
Successful applicants are given a membership card entitling them to free healthcare from RSM and LKM. Membership is re-assessed annually.
Currently we have over 600 members from over 200 families. In the two years that LKM has operated it has provided free healthcare to over 1,000 people. 400 of those people have since experienced improvements in their living conditions that mean they are able to cover the cost of their own healthcare and are no longer eligible for support from LKM or RSM. These improvements have come about mainly due to the hard work of our beneficiaries, but support provided by RSM, LKM and our partner organizations has also helped.
