Ode to ORS
It has been over 50 years ever since
We’ve saved millions pooping little princess and prince
It’s as if it were magic, this potion of life-
With salts, sugar and zinc ending the strife
of children losing water(and adults, too!)
Saving their futures, opening avenues!
Saved a couple soldiers, Captain Philip, US Force
Perfected in Dhaka/ Calcutta, this is the stuff of lore-
A solution so simple, for fatal disease
Can mix or make at home- Um, yes please!
So, then the IAP moved on to say, Let’s do more and give ORS a day!
29th July, of two thousand and one
This announcement in India was done
To encourage ORS usage in the nation
To reduce diarrhoeal deaths, this dedication
To make health accessible in the farthest of nooks
For ORS to reach, beyond research and books.
And though they’ve come down, the number of kids dying
from pooping and puking, I would be lying
if I said that we’ve done it, the children are saved
if anything, we have barely scraped
the surface of this threat, and we CAN do more.
ORS gets better everyday, there is hope in store!
Did you know that if ORS reached all,
(along with zinc) the death rates would fall
drastically, yes, without any drugs
only with ORS, if every sick kid chugged
okay, okay, sipped, this Saviour from dehydration
We could save 93% with zinc and rehydration.
6 level teaspoons sugar, half a teaspoon salt
Exactly a Litre of clean water, mix without fault
That’s DIY although you easily could
Get a little sachet, (Low Osmolarity) you should.
I mean it’s essential, almost on every list-
Indian Govt, WHO, you get the gist.
Affordable and simple, given to every mother
could save folks(from Cholera and every other
acute diarrhoeal disease), yes, ORS for all
and for the malnutritioned we give ReSoMal
Just a little extra to compensate for the lack
to end this cycle of disease, get lives back on track.
So, you see, the point of this long almost-rhyme
is to remind that almost every time,
The solution is simple, if only we tried
to stick to ORS for every under 5
That suffers dehydration; all we really need
is more ANMs, ASHAs and they will do the deed
And more aware mothers in every village and home
So go on, spread the word, let it be known-
More often than drugs and drips, for puke and diarrhoea
Hail ORS, the one true saviour!
By Dr. Shivangi Shankar
Intern, MMCRI, Mysuru
