History of IHIF

The Indian Head Injury Foundation (IHIF) was founded by His Highness Maharaja Gajsingh II of Jodhpur in February 2007, with a mission to build a comprehensive system in India for the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of traumatic brain injury, and to provide neuro-rehabilitation to such patients.

The Indian Head Injury Foundation began in a very modest, unassuming way:
A father concerned for his injured son. This is a story that can be understood by all peoples of all nations.

HH Maharaja’s son, Shivraj Singh, met with a serious head injury while playing polo in Jaipur. He lost consciousness following the injury, was rushed to the SMS Hospital, Jaipur and subsequently to Bombay Hospital, Mumbai. After surgery he was taken to the United States of America for neuro-rehabilitation at The Mount Sinai Medical Center, New York.

As a result of this experience, His Highness became acutely aware of the enormous problem with treating head injuries in India. In fact, India has the highest incidence of head injuries in the world, with essentially no infrastructure for rapid response and treatment. It became obvious to His Highness that specialists for physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy and neuropsychological support had to be brought from the USA to work, as a team, in Jodhpur, as there is no dedicated neuro-rehabilitation Centre in India. Shivraj has amazed everyone as he continues to improve almost six years following his injury through an intensive neuro-rehabilitation program, supervised by rehab specialists from India and abroad. This experience led the Maharaja to establish IHIF so that other Indians, especially those who do not have extensive resources, can receive high-quality aid immediately following injury, as well as neuro-critical care in hospital and finally neuro-rehabilitation, to allow patients to independently manage their activities of daily living as quickly as possible.