volume 11 / issue 11 / NOvember 2016 ` 75 / US $10 / ISSN 0973-8959
Dr Ajay Sankhe
Director, Bhaktivedanta Hospital, Mumbai The vision of the hospital is to serve the humanity by providing affordable and quality healthcare which is holistic in nature implying care of body, mind and soul.
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COVER STORY
Dia nostic
Radiology
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Asia’s first Monthly Magazine on the enterprise of healthcare Volume 11
Issue 11
November 2016
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Contents
november 2016 | VOLUME - 11 | ISSUE - 11
10 Special Interview
Bhaktivedanta Hospital
The
Prescription
“The purpose of our life is to clean the environment of our heart. The art of loving creates the unity which has unlimited spiritual strength and that is the greatest need in the world today.� - His Holiness Radhanath Swami
14 Cover Story
Diagnostic Radiology Changing Face of Healthcare Diagnostic radiology plays a crucial role in bringing quality healthcare to the masses. This field of medicine, which uses imaging exams and procedures in the diagnosis of deadly diseases or injuries, is witnessing an unprecedented growth. It has become indispensable for health professionals to provide quality care to patients.
16 Thought Leader
Andhra Pradesh: Pioneering free lab diagnosis and healthcare for the poor Poonam Malakondaiah Principal Secretary Health, Medical and Family Welfare Department
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Industry Speak
Special Feature
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Pawan Gupta CEO and MD, SIPL
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Advantage Cloud for Healthcare in India
Sharad Agarwal CEO, HLFPPT
Thought Leader
Expert Opinion 33
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24 Abhimanyu Bhosale Co-founder and CEO LiveHealth
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Dr N Khandelwal Professor & Head of Department of Radiology, PGIMER
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Girish Kulkarni CIO Cytecare Cancer Hospitals
Ramesh Desai Senior Manager Information Technology Sagar Hospitals
Emergency Ambulance Services Ziqitza Healthcare Ltd: Embracing Innovative Partnerships to Offer Holistic Solutions S Karthikeyan National Sales Manager Fujifilm India Pvt Ltd
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Sameer Bhati Head, Research & Development and Chief Controller, Medical Education
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Trailblazers of Healthcare Revolution
Madhubala Radhakrishnan M S Founder & President mCURA
Healthcare Solutions Palladium: Transforming Lives Through Linking Social and Financial Impact
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Conference Outcome
34
A Vijayasimha Director and Co-founder OneBreath
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Naresh Jain CEO Ziqitza Healthcare Ltd
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editorial
Diagnostic Radiology, Cloud Computing leading Indian Health Revolution Diagnostic Radiology, that uses imaging exams and procedures to diagnose patients, today plays an integral part in the diagnosis of diseases and injuries irrespective of any form of medical care. As many of us know India has emerged as one of the leading destinations for high-end diagnostic technologies and services with tremendous capital investment in advanced diagnostic facilities to cater to a greater segment of the population, we have tried to highlight it through our cover story, ‘Diagnostic Radiology: The Changing Face of Healthcare’, in this issue of eHealthcare. Through our special feature on cloud computing, we have tried to focus on the advantages of adopting this new-age technology to improve efficiency and workflow in a health organisation. As we know patient-centric technology in the healthcare space has emerged as a dominant theme today for many Indian providers amidst growing concerns of a section of society that hospitals or doctors often lack human touch while treating patients. Through a special story on the Bhaktivedanta Hospital in this issue of eHealth, we have attempted to explore how commitment to serve humanity by providing affordable and quality healthcare, which is holistic in nature, can make a difference to this noble service. There is an immense potential for the Indian healthcare market to grow. The $100 billion sector is estimated to grow to $280 billion by 2020. Part of this revolution will be hospitals, nursing homes, diagnostics centres and pharmaceuticals. Our 2nd Healthcare Summit Rajasthan held in Jaipur recently was a significant step to bring stakeholders, leaders, and giants of medical fraternity from government and private sector on one platform for brainstorming and sharing their concerns and solutions to push India towards a healthy and prosperous tomorrow. The key takeaways from the Summit have been included in the magazine to give readers an insight into the issues and challenges the healthcare industry needs to overcome for growth. We hope our latest issue will succeed in underscoring the Indian health sector’s development and issues that actually matter. Looking forward to readers’ feedback.
Dr Ravi Gupta ravi.gupta@elets.in
November / 2016 ehealth.eletsonline.com
9
Special Interview
Bhaktivedanta Hospital
The
Prescription
“The purpose of our life is to clean the environment of our heart. The art of loving creates the unity which has unlimited spiritual strength and that is the greatest need in the world today. To the degree we have love and harmony in our heart, to that degree we can give it to others. This is very much true and applicable for medical professionals,” says His Holiness Radhanath Swami, the inspiration behind founding of Bhakti Vedanta Hospital and Research Institute, in an exclusive conversation with Elets News Network (ENN). In your view, what is the current healthcare scenario? Indian Healthcare is a story of big contradictions. On one hand, we have the best of brains in healthcare that are more innovative and tech-savvy besides being quick to learn. On the other hand, we are unable to provide affordable healthcare to majority of the population. While healthcare has become one of India’s largest sectors – in terms of revenue and employment (as we have institutions and providers both in private and public that is comparable to the world’s best in secondary, tertiary and quaternary care), we still have a long way to go in providing primary care to the rural and tribal population. Today, healthcare comprises hospitals, medical devices, clinical trials, outsourcing, tele-medicine, medical tourism, health insurance, medical equipment, etc. The Indian healthcare sector is growing at a brisk pace due to its coverage, services and rising investment. India’s competitive advantage lies in its large pool of welltrained medical professionals and in cost-effectiveness compared to Asia and western countries. In the recent conference of FICCI – HEAL 2016, the more relevant subject matter of “Trust Deficit” between providers and patients was discussed.
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37% of the patients believe that the hospitals do not act in the best interest of the patient and 28% of the patients believe that the doctors did not act in the best interest of the patients. Hence, it is time for us to address the missing prescription.
What are the key objectives of Bhaktivedanta Hospital? Kindly give detail of infrastructure and portfolio services available. • Bhaktivedanta Hospital and Research Institute, located at Mira Road, Thane District is NABH Accredited and a fully equipped 225-bed multi-specialty hospital, providing comprehensive, state-of-the-art healthcare facilities for all varieties of diagnostic, medical, surgical and critical cases. • The vision of the hospital is to serve the humanity by providing affordable and quality healthcare which is holistic in nature implying care of body, mind and soul. The hospital follows the values of serving in devotion with a sense of responsibility and contributing towards sustainable community healthcare development in the society. • Dr. Ajay Sankhe, Director (MD Paediatrics) and founding doctor, emphasises “During Vedic times, medical profession stood on the tripod of care, compassion and
“If we do not actively invest in our spiritual growth, quality of life remains shallow... We should be in harmony with our own consciousness; our mind, body, and soul should be one in interest and in purpose. And in that unified condition, we can actually express that natural innate love that we have found in our own life in everything we do in the world.” - His Holiness Radhanath Swami competence. However, we see the erosion of values and all the three Cs have gone for a toss. Thus, the purpose of our hospital is to bring back the glories of medical profession. Our key objective is to help establish a paradigm shift in 21st Century healthcare from a focus on the treatment of disease to the promotion of wellness of individuals, families and communities that is patient centered and community-based. • Bhaktivedanta Hospital has been focusing on spiritual care as a key dimension to healthcare. It has a unique “Department of Spiritual Care” headed by Dr. V. G. Shanbhag and supported by 25+ staff. To this end, we have identified certain areas of concern – lack of spirituality, trust deficit, downward trend of ethics and values. A change in thought process, behaviour, value-based education, programme development and operations will produce significant, measurable and beneficial results. • The hospital owned by Sri Chaitanya Seva Trust has been rendering various Community Health Programmes for the poor and the needy spectrum of
Special Interview
the society since its inception on 11th January, 1998. The hospital was started by a group of doctors who are together since college days and have done over 1,000 camps in rural areas for the needy. • It serves approximate 5.6 million people in and around Mira-Bhayander and Thane and Palghar districts. • While treatment is provided with the latest available technology, care is taken to ensure that the equipment and automation do not compromise the personal touch provided by carefully trained staff. • The hospital is committed to provide quality healthcare to one and all without discrimination and regardless of social, ethnic, religious or political affiliations.
System to face and overcome their shattered condition. Our USP is Unique Service Proposition rather than Unique Selling Proposition. We believe that patients are individual human beings with varied requirements. Hence, personalised approach in spiritual care fulfils the need. Patients need not only physical treatment but also counselling for addressing mental, emotional and spiritual needs. On one hand, Spiritual Care is cost effective and on the other hand it results in overall improvement in health. Research studies (Harvard Medical) have shown that Average Length of Stay (ALOS) has reduced for those who have received spiritual care.
What are the parameters on which Bhaktivedanta healthcare services hold distinction from competing service providers?
Being a healthcare service provider and research institute, you have specific “Spiritual Care Department”, what is the concept behind it?
At Bhaktivedanta Hospital and Research Institute, treatment is given not just for the body but also for the mind and soul. Patients, who are shattered physically; emotionally and spiritually, receive Spiritual Care free of cost, irrespective of their religious faith. The purpose is to provide solace through Spiritual Support
“The vision of the hospital is to serve the humanity by providing affordable and quality healthcare which is holistic in nature implying care of body, mind and soul.” - Dr Ajay Sankhe
The source of inspiration for Spiritual Care department is none other than A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami and His Holiness Radhanath Swami. The purpose is to provide for the overall betterment of the patient, not just the bodily treatment. Dr. Ajay Sankhe, who spearheads the institution, aptly sums up the objectives of Spiritual Care: • Reincorporation of traditional Vedic knowledge and art of healing into the science of healthcare – embracing body, mind, spirit and community involvement. • Restoration of a healthy relationship with the Lord, environment and natural way of living encompassing a holistic approach. • Management of the treatment of disease with emphasis on lifestyle changes, prevention behaviour and selfresponsibility. • Integration of the effective and proven complementary and alternative disciplines. • Encourage and support counselling using M-A-T-C-H Formula and document the entire process of Spiritual Care for wider application
in Health Care Delivery.
What kind of research or training modules are being implemented by Bhaktivedanta’s Medical Research Department to ensure clinicians and clinical researchers stay competent for high quality solutions? Medical research department at Bhaktivedanta Hospital and Research Institute is well-equipped with all essential facilities which are necessary to conduct clinical trials of drugs, and other innovative researches etc. It’s a success story of exemplary functioning of an ethics committee in a non-teaching hospital. Registrations • BhaktiVedanta Hospital Ethics Committee (BhaktiVedanta HEC) is registered as Institutional Ethics Committee under Central Drug standard control organisation (CDSCO) working under Union Health Ministry, New Delhi, in June 2013. • Successfully registered under USFDA (Drug regulatory body of United states) for conducting any global clinical research studies as authorised research centre in May 2015, among very few hospital in India (GDUFA FEI Number is 3010542690 under regulation 21 CFR, Part 207) Key aspects of our research initiatives include: • Successful implementation of 56 Studies in a very short span of 3 years from inception of Medical Research department • The institute is selected as one of the sites for 6 Global and 21 National Clinical Drug Trials, actively contributing towards availability of newer and cost effective medicines to patients in the coming years.
Any plans for collaboration with regard to research department or in any other segment? The medical research department aims to undertake and promote scientific and ethical research studies dedicating towards new outcomes for better patient
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Special Interview
treatment and care. Centralised medical research department headed by Dr. Komal Dalal and Dr. Parag Sarve coordinates with all clinical departments of hospital to facilitate all Investigator Initiated and Sponsored Clinical research projects. It includes a large number and variety of patients, state of-theart diagnostic and therapeutic technologies and an excellent medical record system. The department also promotes Investigator Initiated studies in all specialties which includes Spiritual care, Ayurveda, Herbal Medicine, Nutraceuticals etc. So far, we have • 14 Publications in national and international Journals including case papers and original articles • 4 Research/Poster presentations in National and International Conferences Spiritual Care Research Initiatives Research Proposals under PublicationProved Significant Impact of Spiritual Care on 1. 250 cancer patients and their caregiver undergoing surgical treatment to reduce anxiety 2. 100 Diagnosed Generalised Anxiety and Depression undergoing Medicinal Therapy Ongoing Spiritual Care Research includes:
Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan awarding Dr Ajay Sankhe, Director, Bhakti Vedanta Hospital, Mumbai
1. Angioplasty Patients 2. Hemodialysis Patients, mention a few.
just
to
What are your future plans in terms of expansion, technology adoption and offerings? What is your market share in each service segment? • We are soon going for expansion to meet the community health requirements. • We are also focusing on setting-up primary health/ day-care centres in rural & tribal areas of Wada, Talaseri, etc. • We manage and work towards selfsustainability of idle facilities, thereby increasing the services to the needy. • We have tested and implemented spiritual care as a curriculum in our Nursing Institute. • Spiritual Care in Healthcare delivery is our innovation and we encourage others to incorporate spiritual care in healthcare delivery.
His Holiness Radhanath Swami His Holiness Radhanath Swami has been the inspiration behind Bhaktivedanta Hospital and Research Institute. He is also the member of governing body commission of ISKCON. It was his compassion which motivated the group of doctors to begin medical services for the needy section through outreach healthcare initiatives. He is one of the disciples of A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Founder Acharya of ISKCON. “Bhaktivedanta Hospital is a Temple of healing and it is meant to provide treatment for the body, mind and soul”, says His Holiness Radhanath Swami, who has authored bestsellers ‘Journey Home’ and the latest ‘Journey Within’. He
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has been a regular speaker at some of the leading international forums and is held in the highest esteem by many eminent personalities. He has addressed organisations like Google, E&Y, HSBC global headquarters London, Intel, Oracle, Apple, Milken Global Conference, etc. In the recent times, Swami was invited for one to one meet with US President Barack Obama and former Indian President Pratibha Patil. He has also addressed the MPs at the House of Commons in London. His other initiatives like Annamrita (a mid-day meal project for municipal schools) and Govardhan Eco Village (an organic self-sustaining village) are commendable. His Holiness Radhanath Swami travels regularly throughout India, US and other countries sharing the teachings of Bhakti Yoga.
What are the major challenges in healthcare sector? While technology is getting smarter and extensively used in patient care, still the patient satisfaction has not shown any marked improvement. The patients are increasingly becoming impatient. The emerging scenario of Trust Deficit led Bhaktivedanta Hospital to search for the missing prescription in healthcare delivery and came up with the concept of Spiritual Care. Dr. Ajay Sankhe abridges that “Advancement in technology, newer medicines, more number of superspecialists but alas, less of wellness and more sufferings of the patients – led us to think of alternatives to support patients. Why to keep on copying the western world for healthcare deliveries and why not India contribute to the world based on the Vedic Technology and help in holistic care and cost reduction. Thus, the spiritual care and counselling got initiated”. “Bhaktivedanta Hospital is a practical application of the concept of Management by Spirituality – MBS. We have won many awards including Ethical Organisation in Healthcare services and trendsetter in patient’s well-being and quality care, from Union Minister for Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Ram Vilas Paswan. We are part of GFESH – Global Foundation for Ethics & Spiritual Health and weare keen to bring back the glories of Medical Profession”, says Dr. K. Venkataramanan, Ph. D., Director – Projects and Programme at Bhaktivedanta Hospital & Research Institute
W
E
Clinical Breast Examination
High Resolution Ultrasound
Digital Mammography
Vaccum assisted biopsy & Excision
MR Mammography
Image guided Stereotactic Biopsy Comprehensive Cancer Care
Cover Story
Diagnostic Radiology Changing Face of Healthcare Diagnostic radiology plays a crucial role in bringing quality healthcare to the masses. This field of medicine, which uses imaging exams and procedures in the diagnosis of deadly diseases or injuries, is witnessing an unprecedented growth. It has become indispensable for health professionals to provide quality care to patients, writes Rajbala of Elets News Network (ENN). Diagnostic Radiology and Digital Shift The innovations in diagnostic radiology – X-rays (radiographs, CT, fluoroscopy), nuclear medicine, ultrasound and MRI – are witnessing a paradigm shift with patient safety emerging as the prime concern for equipment manufacturers by reducing radiation output without impacting the quality of results. Consistent advancements have significantly improved equipments in terms of their variety, strength and postprocessing methods. Among the most visible advancements in the diagnostic radiology is the widespread use of digital X-ray, which has become a norm due to its cost effectiveness. Bedside X-rays are moving from analogue to digital, helping the point of care to act immediately and swiftly. If there is a requirement for X-rays in the emergency department – ICU or OT – these digital radiology equipments hold capability to instantaneously create images, reducing dependency on the time taken for image creation. Giving an overview of the advancements made in the ultrasound technology, Dr S Pradeep, Consultant Radiology,
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Fortis Hospital, Bengaluru, says, “Great advancements have been made in ultrasound, where the machine has moved out of the armamentarium of the radiology department to other departments like anesthesiology or neonatology. “Today, small equipments can be used by neonatology department for diagnosing premature babies with intracranial haemorrhage at any time without the need of a radiologist. Later, the pictures can be sent for the radiologist’s opinion. Similarly, anesthesiology departments have also started using ultrasound for point-of-care, where they are learning ultrasound themselves for local block anesthesia. Point-of-care ultrasound is a great advancement.” In CT and MRI, the technology has developed by leaps and bounds in past few years. CT scanning has become much faster, while the dose of radiation imparted has reduced. The types of analysis post processing are also becoming very strong. PET-CT is the gold standard in cancer diagnosis today. MRI scanning today is evolving as the one-stop-shop for examining most organs, except the lungs. The advancement in MRI with 3 Tesla, MRI-guided biopsy, MRI spectroscopy, etc, are also advancing at a very fast pace.
Diagnostic radiology is witnessing huge advancements in terms of equipment and in terms of post processing probabilities, connectivity and digitisation.
Diagnostic Radiology in India The Indian government’s focused approach in the healthcare sector is set to boost the diagnostic radiology market in the country, allowing more facilities to purchase or upgrade their diagnostic imaging equipment. Associations like the Indian Radiological and Imaging Association (IRIA) are promoting R&D on various imaging technologies. Moreover, multinationals have started modifying their products to suit the Indian healthcare needs. The evidence-based technology-oriented treatment is set to become the cornerstone of the Indian healthcare system. The push will come from the government’s committed effort to bring quality healthcare to the remotest areas of the country, thus boosting growth of the diagnostic imaging equipment market in India. In terms of market share, “diagnostic radiology would probably have 30 per cent share in the healthcare sector”, says Dr Pradeep, adding that the field may emerge as
Cover Story
the second highest income generator after operation theatres.
Solution Providers in Indian Market In the last few years, India has witnessed a technological shift from analogue to digital and is fast adopting cost-effective imaging solutions. When it comes to digital solutions like x-ray, mammography, CT or MRI, there are three market leaders in India. These are GE Healthcare, Siemens Healthcare and Philips Healthcare. These companies are providing high-end systems in the country and have the largest market share. Toshiba, Samsung and Hitachi are among other companies which are selling a good number of equipments in India. Majority of radiological investigations today are in digital format and every machine is required to be DICOM compliant. Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) is a standard for handling, storing, printing, and transmitting information in medical imaging. Therefore, it is important to ensure that the imaging devices are DICOM licensed. The images and data from the devices should also be able to connect to PACS (Picture Archival and Communication Systems) for economical storage and convenient access to images. All equipment should be able to send data and images to PACS and in turn PACS should be able to store this data in servers and the cloud for indefinite time for the benefit of the patient. Thanks to this digitised system, remote viewing through smart phones, computers and emergency reporting using smart phones has become a reality now.
Practicing Radiology and Quality Assurance Parametres With technological advancements in radiology, every few months the models of ultrasound and CT or MRI are changing. New equipments with faster imaging and processors are entering the market. Companies are giving a lot of emphasis on reducing the radiation dose to the patients during the examinations that are conducted by using X-rays.
Dr Jatin Sarin Consultant Hematologist and Medical
Oncologist, Chandigarh Cancer and Diagnostic Centre
“Diagnostic radiology has a very important role to play in the oncology along with intervention radiology. It plays a very important role in ascertaining the overall spread of tumour and for doing biopsy. So, effective treatment of cancer is not possible without radiology. Sometimes it is difficult to differentiate between a cancer and other disease. But PET CT scan is very good modality for early detection of the deadly disease. However, accessibility and affordability are the biggest challenges for most patients.” “Availability of trained persons in India is another challenge. There is a shortage of good radiologists who have exposure to oncology imaging. The other problem is the lack of awareness among patients. Biopsy and radiology interventions are important for starting cancer treatment. But there is a misunderstanding about it and people are often advised against biopsy. Therefore, there is a need to educate the patients about these interventions. It is also important that doctors practicing alternative medicine develop their own radiology infrastructure.” Dr Jagdish Modhe
Consultant Interventional Radiologist, PD Hinduja Hospital and Medical Research Centre, Mumbai
“Diagnostic tests are playing an increasingly important role in the healthcare sector. People these days are developing more awareness about their health and diagnostic radiology is playing a vital role in interpreting health concerns of the patients. So, demand and advancements in diagnostic radiology are set to grow in India. India has a huge population and it is going to be big market for the radiology providers.” “Also, to help adopt this technology in India, certain duties on machineries can be reduced to make them affordable. Also, the government can give subsidy to assemble or manufacture these equipments in India.”
In radiology, MRI and ultrasound do not use radiation. But general X-rays, mammography, BMD and CT scan and all procedures done under fluoroscopy, both in radiology and operation theatre, emit radiation. Besides, ERCP done by gastroenterologist and various procedures conducted by orthopedic surgeons in OT also use X-rays. Although radiology departments are aware of the dangers posed by radiation exposure, the increased usage of radiology devices by other departments in the hospital has emerged as a serious challenge. The workers in radiology departments follow all safety procedures. But those handling radiology equipment in other departments like OT, endoscopy room, urology suite and orthopedic suite may not have adequate personal protective equipment like lead aprons, dosimeters etc. Other hospital staff including ward boys, nurses, anesthesiologists, anesthesia assistants, etc, are also vulnerable as they are neither concerned nor aware of the radiation risk from the equipments placed within their surroundings. Hospitals need to provide their workers dosimetres and ensure that the staff members are exposed to radiations within the safe limit. By far, the equipments used today are safe. Most companies are adopting technologies to keep radiations low. Every year, quality checks are done by external agencies so that leakages or malfunctioning of equipments in radiology systems are prevented.
Challenges and Opportunities in Diagnostic Radiology in India India has only 12,000 radiologists for a population exceeding 1.3 billion, which points to a wide gap between the demand and supply. Even if a hospital or a diagnostic centre can afford radiology equipment, they are not able to find an adequate number of radiologists. But this can be changed, as good software are available today to make it possible for radiologists to examine the reports from anywhere in the world.
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Thought Leader
Andhra Pradesh: Pioneering free lab diagnosis and healthcare for the poor The Andhra Pradesh state government has been a trend setter in the health sector. Its health department has created and implemented exemplary models of health programmes under the public-private partnership to address the challenges of extending free diagnosis and healthcare services to the poor, says Poonam Malakondaiah, Principal Secretary, Health, Medical and Family Welfare Department, while sharing much more in an interaction with Sudheer Goutham of Elets News Network (ENN). Tell us about the idea behind the health programme NTR Vaidya Pariksha. Brief us on the level of its implementation. With an aim to achieve health for all and provide quality healthcare service to the poor at government health facilities in the state, the NTR Vaidya Pariksha, the next level of free lab diagnostics programme (under Dr. NTR Vaidya Seva Scheme) was introduced in January 2016. This programme is intended to build faith in public healthcare facilities among the people. All the essential diagnostic lab tests have been outsourced. These tests, provided free of cost to the poor people, include 60 in area and district hospitals (AH and DH), 40 in community health centres (CHCs) and 19 in primary health centres (PHCs). Among the tests provided, the low-cost, high-volume tests are done in in-house facilities and lowvolume, high-cost tests are done in outside facilities. There are over 1,156 PHCs, 192 CHCs, 31 AHs and 8 DHs in the state.
How are essential standards maintained in these diagnostic labs? What are the plans in place to plug the leakages? All the 103 labs that have been set up
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Generally, in outsourcing models of the health sector, consequences like cost increase or blackmailing by external agencies is feared. What steps have been taken in the model to prevent repetition or duplication of tests done by the agencies on a single patient?
under this programme have directed to get the NABL accredition within two years from the commencement of the programme. The timeline has been set keeping in mind the oneyear process NABL accreditation takes. Further, for constant quality monitoring of the investigations, which is very important in such PPP models, the drug control authority conducts raids on these labs every month. Also, on a daily basis, the labs have been mandated to update the State Programme Implementation Office (SPIO) on the kind of reagents (which have specific codes) that are being used.
One of the best features of NTR Vaidya Pariksha is the cost to the service provider or agency is calculated on sample basis and is not test based. Here, each sample equals to one individual patient. The patient may undergo different tests that may usually cost anywhere between Rs.600–2,000 or more in the market, but for us it is only one sample and we pay the agency Rs. 235 per sample. It was the condition that was set right from the time of tender processing. As a result, the cost of tests and diagnosis to the state government is 57-60 per cent less than those standard CGHS rates that are issued by the Government of India annually.
Please explain how it serves as the “basket programme” encompassing ‘hemoglobinopathies’, ‘NCD screening’, etc? For instance, if a patient is suggested
Thought Leader
heamoglobinpathies test, which actually costs Rs. 640 in the market, we (the state government) will pay only Rs235 to the agency. If a patient is prescribed to undergo over 40 tests that also includes heamoglobionpathies tests, which may cost more than Rs 2,000, we only pay Rs 235 as it is only a single sample for us.
What is the level of transparency maintained in dealing with the service provider? All the payments to the service providers or agencies are done through electronic mode. There is no need for the service provider to walk into our offices for payments, but only for the review of the services. We get the physical invoice from the service provider, following which our analytical team verifies it through the data available online. So, the physical interaction between the government and implementing agency for finances is zero. The review of the services is done every month.
How is the model or initiative different from those implemented in other states? It’s a phenomenal programme, as any patient coming from across the state
will have an assurance of undergoing the entire essential tests needed for the treatment. Establishing 103 labs and setting up centres in 1,300 locations was a huge task that we could achieve in three months. In the last eight months, over 1.15 crore investigations took place which is 85 lakh more investigations than that were taken up last year before the programme was implemented. This programme has directly saved (even if we consider a modest cost of Rs. 100 for each investigation) Rs1,15,000 crores out of the pocket money of 37 lakh poor people who availed the services. If we calculate the expenditure in other areas like free medicine and healthcare, it multiplies into many times. The ultimate goal of the government will be providing health services, diagnosis and medicines supported by a doctor to the patient. Thus this ecosystem with free diagnosis, medicines and doctors service in one place is usually lacking in other states due to gaps in their models. Over Rs. 280 crores has been earmarked for drugs to the patients. Thus a patient who visits the public facility in the state, will get checked by the doctor, diagnosis report will come to the same doctor and eventually the patient will go back home with chunk of essential drugs for the treatment
• NTR Vaidya Pariksha offers all the essential diagnostic lab tests free of cost to the poor people • 103 labs have been set up under the pioneering programme • 60 tests are offered in area and district hospitals (AH and DH), 40 in community health centres (CHCs) and 19 in primary health centres (PHCs) • The cost to the service provider is calculated on sample basis and is not test based • The cost of tests and diagnosis to the state government is 57-60 per cent less than those standard CGHS rates that are issued by the Government of India annually • The drug control authority conducts regular raids on the labs to check frauds • All the payments to the service providers or agencies are done through electronic mode • The health history and data of each patient is linked to the individual Aadhar card
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at the facility. The entire ecosystem of health, without any loose ends, has been established. This has been implemented in line with the National Health Mission. How has been the response to the programme so far and what is size of eligible people for these services? Of the total five crore population in the state, over 90 per cent are white card holders. The response has been tremendous to the programme. Prior to its implementation, a baseline survey had shown that over 52 per cent of the people had poor access to diagnostic facilities. However, since the implementation of the programme the numbers have fared well. In 2015, the total footfall of patients was five crore. However, since the implementation of the programme there is already an additional inflow of 30 lakh patients. Thus there is an increase in in-patients by 25 per cent.
What are the further plans for up gradation of this programme? The programme has been fully implemented. Even the health history and data of each patient is linked to the individual Aadhar card. So, a patient who wants to undergo treatment in private health facility can go with same health reports without any need to undergo similar tests again.
Tell us about the demographic disease profile linking with e-aushadhi and e-HMS aspect of the programme. Every disease is geographically localised due to climatic conditions. For instance, dengue is prevalent in urban areas, malaria in tribal areas, while some regions are prone to filariasis. So, based on the demographic reports and profile of diseases, the department is coming up with better planning solutions that will help in setting up required facilities, services restructuring the existing human resource there in order to deal with it effectively.
Industry Speak
SIPL - Making Waves in Pathology world Star Imaging and Path Lab (SIPL) Ltd. has today well-established Pathological and Radiology laboratories and centres, Para medical institute, etc. It is well established in the healthcare industry physically as well as virtually, says Pawan Gupta, CEO and MD, SIPL in an interview with Elets News Network (ENN). Excerpts: What is the present scenario of innovation in medical technology in India? India is a growing market and economy with a promising medical tourism industry. Today, we have all the leading technologies as well as a skilled workforce to operate them. But amidst all these opportunities, our true development will be our contribution towards developing new medical technologies on our own. Keeping these things in mind, we started a para-medical training institute where we focus in developing skill-based workforce as well as new medical technology developing brains. Our industrial understanding and collaborations are turning out to be a big success. We have traditional knowledge and understanding about health and medical science and now a skilled young force makes us the most suitable candidate to lead this medical innovation race.
What is the vision behind SIPL? We realised much earlier that in the near future diagnostics services will be the main probe for any kind of medical treatment. Few questions were in our mind at that time. These were: how to ensure the quality of diagnostic services and technologies for every citizen in India at a justified price? How to implement the best business practices and business ethics with natural ethics? and how to ensure clients are well informed about their health issues and remedies. With these
basic questions in our mind, we have started a mission in 1978 with the name of Janta X-Ray Clinic in Delhi to serve the society. Though we have been successful, there are many other goals we seek to achieve.
What sort of latest new technologies are you using? From Pathology to Radiology department, we have latest advanced technologies with us. Some of them can be classified as: • 3D Imaging, Digital Low Dose X-ray, 5D Ultrasound. • Best collection of 5-CT Scanners which include GE Optima 660 (Lowest Radiation Dose) • CT Coronary Angiography, CT enterography, 5 Beat Cardiac Angiography, Paediatric Coronary Imaging, dedicated VIVID 7 for doing Dynamic Echocardiography by DM Cardiologist. • Whole Body MRI Scans which help to detect cancer and tumors, Emphysema. • Heart disease, Spinal disease, Aneurysms, Osteoporosis, Ovarian disease, Endocrine tumours etc. • Dental Imaging Revolution Occlusal x-ray. • Also upgraded to fully automated lab which is bi-directional, bar coded and runs on DRY platform from Johnson and Johnson for both immunoassays and biochemistry. • Filmless or Green technology implementation
• All latest pathology testing system.
What measures are being adapted by SIPL to embrace the latest technology in its system? All our labs are fully automated and well connected to the central lab. We have introduced e-wallet for our patients, where they can store their medical data. We are paper films based lab where environment and technologica advancements are symbiotic in nature. All NABL and NABH standards and quality control norms are fully implemented by us. All big brands and manufacturing companies of these diagnostic and pathological testing machines and kits are in direct collaboration with us. From sample collection to testing and then disposal management, every step of this system follows all world class norms and criteria. All our services are of world standard.
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Industry Speak
Self-sustainability is the New-age Mantra
As a pioneer in social marketing and social franchising in India, Hindustan Latex Family Planning Promotion Trust (HLFPPT) has been serving the nation with reproductive and child healthcare solutions over the last 25 years. Sharad Agarwal, CEO, HLFPPT, talks about the organasation’s evolving leadership in value-driven health initiatives and self-sustainable models in an interaction with Elets News Network (ENN).
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eproductive wellness is one of the most crucial, yet neglected, aspects of healthcare that is largely driven by myths and socio-cultural inhibitions. Hence, global consensus has placed it under the continuum of care by making ‘universal access to sexual and reproductive healthcare’ a significant target under the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. The Post-2015 development agenda strongly pledges to reduce global maternal death rates and end AIDS epidemic by 2030. “To contribute towards India’s global health commitments, Hindustan Latex Family Planning Promotion Trust (HLFPPT) has been working on the entire spectrum of RMNCH+A (reproductive, maternal, newborn, child and adolescent healthcare) and HIV prevention and control,” says Sharad Agarwal, CEO, HLFPPT. It is a not-for-profit organisation promoted by HLL Lifecare Ltd (a Mini-ratna PSU). “Our active presence across 21 states, UTs and approximately 50 programmes bear testimony of our emergence as one of the leading notfor-profit organisations in India,” Agarwal adds.
Strategic Expertise Since its inception in 1992, HLFPPT has been working with the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, government bodies, national and international
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“We need to develop ideas and projects that are based on market-driven principles yet serve the underserved.” - Sharad Agarwal, CEO, HLFPPT
development agencies, top PSUs and the corporate sector on healthcare programmes. The company has been an active contributor in the National Health Mission, National AIDS Control Programme, FP2020, Millennium Development Goals, and more recently, SDGs, Skill India Mission, among others etc. In the last 25 years, HLFPPT has emerged as a pioneer in social marketing and social franchising in India and gradually e v o l v e d strategic expertise i n capacity
building, behaviour change communication, skill development, technical assistance, health system strengthening, etc.
Self-sustainability “One of our flagship programmes is Merrygold Health Network – India’s largest social franchising health network based on the publicprivate partnership model. It is focused on providing quality reproductive and child health services at affordable rates,” Agarwal says. “Our
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network comprises 700 plus health facilities, 800 plus doctors and over 15,000 community health volunteers across seven states (Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Bihar, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Uttarakhand). And the numbers are growing every day,” he adds. However, Agarwal asserts the need for developing self-sustainable models. “We are witnessing a paradigm shift in the way voluntary bodies function. In this time and age, projects also need to be self-sustaining rather than only being externally funded or supported,” he says. As a step in this direction, HLFPPT has initiated efforts to make MGHN self-sustainable in the long run. “We need to develop ingenious ideas and projects that have the potential to generate funds for their sustenance. This will create transparency and accountability within the organisation,” he says.
Corporate Partnerships “Another successful model by HLFPPT is mobile medical units (MMUs) or health vans that take healthcare services to the underserved communities in far-flung, remote and inaccessible regions,” points out Agarwal. MMUs offer free health checkups, diagnostic tests and medicines through door-to-door services; conduct health awareness camps; and make patient referrals to public
Key Achievements: HLFPPT has facilitated more than • 2 million antenatal checkups • 0.2 million institutional deliveries • 600,000 IUCD insertions • 110,000 sterilisations • 2.5 million family planning counselling • Increased access of 100.5 million condoms through social marketing • Reached out to 1.6 million vulnerable population with HIV/AIDS awareness and services • 65,000 PLHIV (people living with HIV) with care and support healthcare system. “We are currently operating 11 MMUs in seven states (Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, West Bengal, Kerala, Uttar Pradesh and Uttrarakhand). Out of these, five are being operated in partnership with the corporate sector,” he informs. “We are increasingly providing primary healthcare services to underserved communities through multiple CSR Initiatives,” says Agarwal. Currently, HLFPPT is working with leading corporates like Cairn India, Essar Group, Suzlon Energy Ltd, Jindal Steels & Power Ltd, DLF Foundation, Apollo Foundation etc. CSR projects include community health interventions, Merrysilver Clinics, etc. “We are soon coming up with a specialised mobile diabetes care unit with one of our CSR partners that will offer door-to-door early
Lifesaving Products for Infants and Mothers HLFPPT has partnered with Laerdal Global Health (LGH) to facilitate distribution of Laerdal products across the country for improving health of mothers and newborns and also to facilitate capacity building initiatives. LGH is a Norway-based not-for-profit company that develops products and programmes aimed at saving lives of newborns and mothers in low-resource countries. The goal of Laerdal Global Health is to help save 400,000 lives per year by 2020. Under this partnership, HLFPPT has been leveraging expertise in the field of social marketing, social franchising, capacity building, community mobilisation and health skilling for effective product distribution.
detection and treatment of diabetes in Gurgaon,” he says.
Skill Development Working in sync with the Central Government’s flagship Skill India Mission, HLFPPT has initiated a skill development programme that aims to address the dearth of skilled human resources in healthcare and other allied sectors through quality training and offering sustainable livelihood options to the youth. Under this programme, HLFPPT is training students in various trades including: general duty assistant, home health aide, medical lab technician, operation theatre assistant and technician, dialysis assistant and technician, diabetes educator and emergency medical technician. “A cadre of skilled health assistants – second and third line of health professionals – can support in enhancing reach and quality of service delivery. Hence, we need to build capacities of these assistants and equip them with requisite skills,” says Agarwal. HLFPPT has been implementing the programme in UP, Bihar, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Odisha, Rajasthan and Himachal Pradesh through affiliated skill centres. “Moreover, we are also providing sustainable livelihood options to underprivileged youth. Going ahead, they may evolve as valuable resources globally too,” he says.
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Industry Speak
Future of Healthcare Post Cloud
Cloud computing has changed businesses, enterprises and the way companies have adopted technology. But what’s next or can be anticipated from the cloud in forthcoming years? How will that affect the healthcare industry, examines Abhimanyu Bhosale for Elets News Network (ENN) and shares new business models being adopted and its impact on healthcare providers.
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ew years ago, not many would have imagined this present-day world with mobile phones would be so pervasive, and the internet would become an integral part of our lives. Newer platforms are leveraging the
capabilities of cloud and mobility to build applications, something viewed impossible earlier. Affordability, scalability and collaboration have always been key drivers for any business. Now with cloud, we can have
applications at much affordable cost, making it easier for businesses to migrate that scale much faster and has got more collaborative at work in a more natural way than earlier when it was more fragmented and compartmentalised.
So what lies ahead in this Cloud Era? There are lots of new business models that were not possible before but are now being readily adopted by companies.
SaaS (Software as a Service) Though a relatively old concept in the west, it is the one that has made a lot of difference to how we pay for services and softwares. SaaS is a licensing model that makes it affordable for businesses to invest, starting with a small timely subscription and get started with software services without IT overheads. SaaS as a business model has made a huge impact in the tech world, from companies like Google and Microsoft which have pivoted their core services like document editing and e-mail services towards a subscription pricing than a one-time purchase like before. This is a win-win situation for consumers and businesses, as the consumers always get the latest version of the software, without worrying about compatibility and maintenance. And, the businesses
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Industry Speak
enjoy a steady revenue to enable them fund their growth and innovation. But most importantly, SaaS gives freedom to customers, freedom to evaluate softwares with trials, freedom from IT infrastructure investment, freedom to scale on demand and pay for on the services one avails. But using SaaS can also be a doubleedged sword for business with poor quality and bad products/services. Since the businesses only make money in long term, consistently providing quality service becomes a cornerstone of the business model. We are seeing more and more software companies pivoting to SaaS as a platform. LiveHealth was one of the early adopters of SaaS offerings to its customers and lot of other software solutions have followed to start with SaaS as a core business model. SaaS products has become an obvious choice for anyone starting his business or someone who wants to upgrade its services or solutions. This will essentially help businesses focus on their core and invest more wisely.
Pay Per Use It’s again a traditional cloud business model, introduced by Amazon Web Services on a large scale to its consumers. Pay Per Use or, PPU is a model again focused to drastically reduce costs and pay only for the time and capacity the service or infrastructure is being used. This gives a more granular approach to pricing for services or computation or storage. Services like PACS, document archival systems, archiving of medical records or files. So, we expect to see more services offering a granular pricing structure for usages and storages where the volumes are intermittent. The PPU model is further divided into computation and storage. PPU for Computation is designed for on demand computing where a company would require scaling up infrastructure for a particular duration of the time during working
computation, and storage more affordable and optimised. It will then help businesses have better mileage. The future of applications with cloud is not only more affordable and mobile but also collaborative. Collaboration is a natural way to work and connect, and with connected applications working on cloud makes that possible. A collaborative healthcare ecosystem is where doctors, technical staff and patients are updated in real time about the status of their tests, medical records or any feedback from patients. Collaboration in business makes it easy for healthcare workers to spend less time communicating update to co-workers. For doctors, it’s easier to authorise and consult for reports and images as they can see updates and get notified when the tests are done and pending authorisation. Doctors also collaborate more freely by sharing their comments for senior doctors to review. Cloud is not only transforming the way how healthcare providers have been traditionally managing their IT operations but it has enabled them to explore newer business models. Cloudbased applications and services present a plethora of opportunities to the healthcare providers - to scale-up faster, to collaborate seamlessly and to provide more effective patient care, all this while cutting cost. Though the adoption of cloud was slow earlier, the need for affordable solutions to manage the data faster and accurately has encouraged the healthcare industry to adopt it widely. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that the future of healthcare appears to be lying in the cloud. 1
or peak hours. This can be used for application or services which require heavy processing of DICOM images in case of MRI and CT scan, or synchronising multiple applications at the end of day or multiple times during the day where multiple applications on different locations are synced.
“Cloud-based applications and services present a plethora of opportunities to the healthcare providers - to scale-up faster, to collaborate seamlessly and to provide more effective patient care, all this while cutting cost.” PPU for Storage is modeled towards services that require heavy storages like PACS or document archival systems where the files are stored in real time for a particular or long term storage. Pricing is adjusted in number of retrievals based on how frequently one uses the data or the information being stored. This will make businesses store more data at lesser costs. Overall these models are designed to make services, softwares,
(The writer is Co-founder and CEO of LiveHealth, a cloud based, mobile ready healthcare platform that connects the healthcare providers, doctors and patients. Views expressed above are his personal opinion.)
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Industry Speak
PGIMER, Chandigarh – Impacting Healthcare With Radiology
PGIMER, Chandigarh today boasts of some of the finest facilities available globally in radiology, with advanced technology and state of the art equipment in place to diagnose and treat patients, finds Priya Yadav of Elets News Network (ENN) while speaking to Dr N Khandelwal, Professor and Head of Department of Radiology, PGIMER, Chandigarh.
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adiology has come a long way from being an occasional diagnostic tool to an essential one in treatment of a large number of diseases. Almost every other patient coming to the hospital in PGIMER requires radiological intervention at some stage of the treatment. Dr Naveen Kalra, a radiologist at the institute, said, “There has been an immense advancement in diagnostic tools like MRI, CT Scan. We are now able to do volume imaging – multipanel Sections—you can do very thin sections as thin as .5 mm. This was not possible earlier. Now we are able to do intervention radiology which allows us to introduce a catheter through a pin hole under image guidance. We can do endovascular intervention where through a small hole we access a vessel, go all the way up to the area of pathology using guide wires, stent can be put – you can put treating agents directly to the site. We are working in tandem with other departments, hepatology, surgery, nephrology, oncology, urology. Intervention oncology is big.” Dr Khandelwal says radiology allows you to put in needles and burn tumors and guide where to target micro invasive therapy. “We are able to target the focus area of abnormality and leave the normal area. Way forward is Picture Archiving and Communication System- kind of radiology information system where everything will be digitalised.
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“What we want will go into back up – reports will be available online – people won’t have to keep running around for reports,” he said, adding: “We are doing coronary radiology for predicting the status of heart vessels – their narrowing and what kind of intervention is required. This has brought down the number of angiographies being done, as now only those are done where stent needs to be placed.” PGI also has irreversible electroporation facility, one of its kind in the country. This is the means of burning tumors inside – even if you have a vessel close to it only the tumor is affected and the surrounding normal tissues are not damaged. Tracing the journey of radiology, Dr Khandelwal said: “Since 80s we used to have conventional X-rays but now technology is on a different path. What is available on a global-level is also available in PGI. The kind of CT scan, MRI, is of global standard. There is a sea change in diagnostic tools – huge impact on the overall morbidity
and mortality and cost on economy. “If you can diagnose a disease at early stage – your hospital stay decreases so does cost on treatment. We are diagnosing things at early stage. The flip side is that more and more investigations are done now. In the case of a patient coming with a cough, earlier X-ray of chest was adequate but now we will also do CT.” The component where we were lacking was digitisation—whatever data we are generating we were not being able to take its advantage. But now the concept of radiology is changing fast – patient management will have a huge impact – the patients’ harassment will end – this movement across the hospital for the same job will reduce, patient sitting at home will get a sms about his report and he will not have to come again – it will go directly to the physician . Major advantage will be for long distance patients who will be able to access the report online.” This huge data was also not being used for research purpose for not being digitised. Now this will happen. The other good point is dealing with shortage of radiologist -- we can have community radiology. Mobile outreaching programme -- patients at high risk are not going to come to you but we have to reach out to them. In the city, we also proposed to cover four corners of the city – ultrasound and X-ray can be provided on mobile vehicle and the whole city will have e-radiology with all reports digitised. To have a smart city tag, this would be smartest to have.
Industry Speak
Demand for Computerised Radiography System Poised to Grow
The reduced price gap between Non-Mammography CR and Mammography CR has helped customers to go for a Mammography Ready CR rather than upgrading their CR system at a later stage, writes S Karthikeyan, National Sales Manager, Fujifilm India Pvt Ltd for Elets News Network (ENN).
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omputerised Radiography (CR), with a market size of over 4,000 units per annum, has been growing at more than 10 per cent rate year -on-year basis. It’s mainly fuelled by customers in the C and D Class cities. The preference is to go digital directly rather than starting with analogue first and then moving to digital. Space constraint at customer sites has pushed forward requirement for compact and space saving CR systems. The cost of equipment and service support have been considered as the key factors while purchasing CR and imager.
With the benefit of being used for a variety of applications, such as General Purpose radiography, Mammography and Dental, CR sales is poised to grow in the coming years.
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The reduced price gap between Non-Mammography CR and Mammography CR has helped customers to go for a Mammography Ready CR rather than upgrading their CR system at a later stage. Since the output from a CR is digital, the end user has greater flexibility in terms of distributing images. This can be sent over a network for reporting through tele-radiology or can be connected to local Mini-PACS network. A combination of CR and MiniPACS in a hospital has been very useful in terms of transferring images from the X-ray room to the consultant room. It reduces time taken to send patient images to the consultants. Also, hospitals have been trying to utilise the benefit of using CR in mobile vans and buses in order to provide services to the rural population and for health camps. CR can be installed in mobile vans along with Ultrasound, X-ray, Mammography and Diagnostic equipment. Few corporates have
opted for mobile vans as part of their CSR initiative. It needs to be mentioned that to ensure better convenience and quick diagnosis, the trend to install CR system at the ICUs is on the rise.
Industry Speak
SIPL - Evolving With Clients’ Needs In Diagnostics World As per modern-day demands, SIPL has evolved itself and become mobile with clients’ requirements. Presently, it has complete online as well as mobile appbased system, says Sameer Bhati, the Head of Research and Development and Chief Controller of Medical Education of the leading organisation in an interview with Elets News Network (ENN). Excerpts: What kind of business initiatives are being planned to evolve SIPL as one of the top brands in the medical industry? We are in the process of doing backward, forward, vertical and horizontal integrations around our core competency. After starting our diagnostics business, in order to get highly skilled manpower we started our own para medical training institute with an industrial collaboration so that our highly automated laboratories and the whole system can get trained support. As per modern-day demands, we evolve ourselves and become mobile with our clients’ requirements. Presently, we have online as well as mobile app-based systems. We utilise intellectual platforms for sharing our experience and understanding of the industry with the rest of the world through seminars and conferences. We are actively participating in all government initiatives related to health and skill missions. We are nurturing students from Jammu and Kashmir to Jharkhand, or simply from across India. Now SIPL is a renowned brand known in diagnostics, academics and knowledge sharing organisation.
What is the market perspective of SIPL? Since 2000, we have seen phenomenal growth in terms of market share as well as quality of services. We hold 60 per cent market share in West Delhi,
50 per cent in Central, 30 per cent in South and East Delhi. In NCR, we have 20 per cent market share. Along with more than 60 branches and 600 plus employees, we have the most advanced machines and fully-automated labs. Every year our productivity and efficiency is increasing by a factor of 0.4. We have no hesitation in stating that presently we are one of the three top diagnostic labs operating in the Delhi NCR region.
With the Indian healthcare system witnessing an unprecedented level of competition, how research and development is keeping the SIPL afloat in these times? With time and requirements we have shown the flexibility of changing, or correctly saying, evolving ourselves easily. At the time of creating market space for ourselves, we implemented various marketing and operational strategies. But now, when we are already well established, our prime focus is on R&D and skill development. In all stages of our development, one thing that was always common was the focus on quality of services. We are doing R&D in all verticals from service to marketing, technology to customer relationship, to document management and disposal management. A healthy part of our total revenue is invested in R&D, as we believe only R&D can differentiate our products and services. We are able to focus on R&D easily because
we are experienced campaigners of this industrial segment and we can afford the kind of investment which is still a distant vision for many of our competitors.
What is the role of Chief Controller of Medical education? In SETI (Star Education and Training Institute), I am associated as a Chief Controller of Medical Education. My main responsibility is to make sure that all designated standards and guidelines laid down by any government authority or governing body should be strictly complied with. I also make sure that all affiliations and course contents’ authenticity as per industrial as well as governing body’s norms are properly implemented. Other than these issues, any operational or technical hurdle addressed by any stakeholder of the SETI is ultimately tackled by me.
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Industry Speak
An Innovation Twist in Healthcare
When it comes to healthcare service delivery in the country, there is need for improved results - better access, faster diagnosis and treatment, more convenience, affordability and so on. The challenges faced by our Indian healthcare system calls for a radically different approach through innovation. A Vijayasimha, Director and Co-founder of OneBreath, shares his insight with Elets News Networks (ENN) on the adoption of innovation in healthcare service delivery. Underlying Need for Innovation in Indian healthcare In India, our healthcare vertical faces a growing need to fix its basic health concerns and has many gaps in our healthcare infrastructure. Likewise, many of the equipments designed in the west or more developed countries are not designed considering these gaps. In India, only a small part of the population has access to quality healthcare, thus, raising issues on the equitability of our fundamental rights.
Major Gaps: • Infrastructure: It includes gaps like transportation, availability of infrastructure involving airconditioning, power supply or uninterrupted power supply. The infrastructure issue can be addressed by standardising diagnostic procedures, building rural clinics, and developing streamlined health IT systems, and improving efficiency. • Second kind of gap is need for knowledge and skilled workers in healthcare sector, especially in the primary care and to a large extent in the secondary care system. We have scarcity of doctors and nurses who are either not equipped or trained adequately to be able to handle advanced equipment optimally or not highly trained to handle different types of equipment processes.
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Facing this, patients are unable to get quality treatment. Majorly, we lack expertise or knowledge in the healthcare system. The need for skilled medical graduates continues to grow, especially in rural areas which fail to attract new graduates because of finance. A sizeable percentage of the graduates also go abroad to pursue higher studies and employment which is a sort of drawback for the country. • Rising expenses on treatment: Third and most important gap is rising treatment expenses which is unaffordable for patients that is there or being offered by healthcare system. It is mainly unavailability of affordable services. Besides the rural-urban divide, high expenses are like another key driver of India’s healthcare landscape. Due to complete dependence on imports of medical technology we end up facing the challenge of the inappropriateness of these technologies and they end up
being not used. Many innovators in India have attempted redesigning and developing these products to overcome some of the limitations in resource and infrastructure and stripping away features that require greater skill or knowledge. A few other innovators use the existing building blocks, like lego blocks, to bring in new functionality to overcome the resource gaps such as we see in the telemedicine projects across rural India. These innovations do not majorly disrupt the clinical workflow and provide enhanced outcomes. What could be a third kind of innovation are the new path-breaking ones that challenge existing clinical practices by providing faster, better (with higher sensitivity) and cheaper diagnostic and therapeutic outcomes. This requires deep science, clinical knowledge and multidisciplinary multi-stakeholder partnerships. This kind of invention based innovation is uncommon in our country.
Disruptive Innovation Disruptive innovation could require that we look at very different ways of looking at how and where we provide healthcare and wellness support vis a vis sickcare, for critically ill patients that need hospitaliation and intensive care. Disruptive innovation would bring powerful diagnostic and therapeutic tools into the hands front-line care workers. As an example, in India, it
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is being observed that prevalence of breast cancer in younger women is on the rise. With the poor performance of mammography, its attended need for a regulated infrastructure and skilled reading, India needs a solution that works in the primary care setting and should be rapid enough to screen the millions at risk.
The major drivers defining the solutions for Indian healthcare Major drivers are basically based on gaps that are needed to be addressed which are accessibility and affordability. In terms of accessibility, patients are now able to access some of these technologies through their primary care system i.e. through the PHC. People will be more encouraged to come down to avail such facilities in their local areas rather than travelling long distances. Additionally, treatments in an early stage of disease, will help patient save lakh of rupees. Hence, major drivers are basically based on the fact that since we do not have accessibility it is leading people to spend lakh of rupees, first. Second, accessibility will drive people to adopt preventive healthcare measures and an adequate awareness about the diseases, that if one come early, treated early, will help them save time, long treatment processes and save money. Having said that, the key drivers affordability and accessibility are needed to be kept in mind while designing medical devices, equipment or infrastructure.
Government Initiatives Interestingly, government has been taking certain steps to create affordable healthcare services for the last mile. Based on the fundamental rights, the government is responsible for providing screening to patients in time to prevent diseases at an early stage which leads treatment to be done in much lower costs.
On the regulatory side, the Indian government plays an important role in running health insurance plans for high-risk diseases.
Innovations into the routine clinical practice Disruptive innovations developed in the emerging economies have the potential for being adopted globally and used by the more developed countries. This was termed “reverse innovation”. This term is at most a short sighted expression of utility of the product. There are plethora of innovations that have moved from an emerging country innovation into the the developed economies. However, its still young days for India.
the study is being carried out. This addresses the clinicians need to gain confidence the device being safe and reliable. • technology adoption can happen only if doctors are re-trained, and they can start practicing the same to produce best results for their patients. Even students who are looking forward for their careers in healthcare can be educated about the new technology. • Lastly, the medical device sector is one of the growing sectors in the country but number of regulatory challenges has prevented its growth and development. According to reports, the medical devices sector is seen as the most promising
“Disruptive innovation creates greater access by moving the service proximal to the population. However, the challenges in purpose of the primary care which is prevention and management of disease versus the goal of intervening and curing the disease requires the recognition that a single technology cannot perform both these functions optimally.” On Changing Paradigms Preventive and promotive healthcare and sickcare represented by their different goals need their own unique gold standards of measure, almost to the point that may use completely different biomarkers and scores. The gold standard test usually refers to a diagnostic test or benchmark that is the best available under reasonable conditions. Other times, gold standard is used to refer to the most accurate test possible without restrictions. Developing a new gold standard of practice must anchor its references to absolute standards and this would need • An extensive clinical evaluation of the technology in the country where
area and will play major role in development of healthcare.
IT integration in healthcare IT is a tool and which works according to available information. Although, it has made things communicable between patients and doctors in much easier way. But, another area of technology is artificial intelligence which will play as major catalyst of change in healthcare. In terms of healthcare and medicine, artificial intelligence could organize patient routes or treatment plans better, and also provide physicians with literally all the information they need to make a good decision.
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e g a t n a v d A r o f d u o l C e r a c h t l a He a i d n I in
Special Feature
Cloud computing is today driving change in the Indian healthcare system. The technology comes with multiple advantages for healthcare establishments including workflow management, ease of storing, managing and processing huge volumes of patient information being churned out on a daily basis, writes Ritika Srivastav of Elets News Network (ENN).
C
loud computing is playing a significant role in the healthcare sector. The internet-based computing technology uses a secure network of remote servers hosted online to store, manage, and process data that can be easily accessed from anywhere in the world.
Why Cloud Computing? Cloud computing can be an effective way to connect and synchronise the entire healthcare system. Using this, patients, hospitals, clinics, dispensaries, laboratories, doctors, pharmacist, medical consultants and counsellors can all be made part of a system to manage work flow. The application of cloud computing in managing healthcare can not only improve the quality of services, but can also be a boon for patients who
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stand to benefit due to flexibility and convenience that the system offers. A section of doctors believes that cloud computing can effectively connect management with healthcare professionals through sharing of data. The benefits of cloud computing extend to the actual management structure and make it easy to follow their working pattern.
Relevance of Cloud Computing for Healthcare Cloud computing is the key to use resources effectively to manage healthcare services. It can be used to store health information of patients for longer periods and make it available to health professionals as and when required. The web-based computing technology has been transforming the way healthcare is delivered in India.
It is increasingly being adopted by the government, non-governmental organisations and private sector for its transparency and effectiveness. It is emerging as a tool to collaborate on big healthcare projects where government and NGOs are working together for improving health parametres of citizens. Information technology giants like Microsoft are, therefore, seeking tie-ups with healthcare providers to provide technical training and support to their healthcare staff and promoting public awareness in the field. There are many developmental programmes happening in India in collaboration with top IT companies. “mCURA has implemented first-of-itskind smart OPD in a major hospital of Delhi with 35,000 patient transactions a month using cloud computing,” says Madhubala Radhakrishna, Founder and CEO of mCURA. “This collaboration takes the healthcare IT to the next level, as we have provided hardware, technology, platform and trained manpower completely as service with zero upfront cost to hospitals,” she adds. Technology platform includes modules right from appointments, queue management, e-wallet or cash cards with payment gateway and status, medical records management, e-prescription delivery, order management and continuum of care.
Special Feature
The company provides real time status update on queue, patientmedical record view, access, revenue inputs to doctors from their mobile phone anywhere anytime.
Models of Cloud Computing There are majorly three deployment models of cloud computing. These are public cloud, private cloud and hybrid cloud.
Private Cloud Private Cloud is cloud infrastructure operated solely for a single organisation, whether managed internally or by a third-party, and hosted either internally or externally.
Public Cloud A cloud is called a public cloud when the services are rendered over a network that is open for public use. Public cloud services may be free.
Hybrid Cloud Hybrid cloud is a composition of two or more clouds (private, community or public) that remain distinct entities but are bound together, offering the benefits of multiple deployment models.
Benefits of Cloud Computing Cloud computing consists of several features that can be beneficial for healthcare sector. The technology is flexible, software updates are automatic, and it facilitates cost-
free capital expenditure, integrated collaboration, ease of work from any place, control of document and security. Besides, cloud computing offers competitive advantage and is environment-friendly. Setting up a technology in a hospital comes with its own set of challenges like technical support and regular updates of the system. These problems are in general with one application. If we are using hundreds of applications, it becomes more complicated. Cloud computing is a better solution to resolve these issues. One needs to simply plug-in and get started by sharing data centres which is cost effective too. When you are using any application under cloud computing you just need to login, customise and start using it. That’s the power of cloud computing. Cloud enables people to do transactions from anywhere. It helps manage workflow in a healthcare setup. A large volume of data is generated in any healthcare industry which needs
Top Companies in Cloud Computing Space Some of the top companies operating in the cloud computing space include Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, IBM, Google Cloud Platform, Salesforce.com, Adobe and Oracle Cloud, among others. Karamveer Khanna, General Manager, HSCC (India) Limited, says: “When it comes to healthcare, ICT enabled HSCC to get involved in healthcare. Our vision is to make healthcare services hassle free for common people. Our aim is to create a scenario where people don’t hesitate to visit government hospitals. We are providing Queue Management System, Hospital Information Management System through which all your data is packed into digital form.”
to be processed and managed. Cloud makes this possible.
Understanding Technology of Cloud Computing Cloud computing applies traditional supercomputing, or high-performance computing power, normally used by military and research facilities, to perform tens of trillions of computations per second. In consumeroriented applications such as financial portfolios, to deliver personalised information, provide data storage or power large, immersive online computer games. At present, the standards for connecting the computer systems and the software needed to make cloud computing work are not fully defined, leaving many companies to define their own cloud computing technologies. Companies like IBM offer “Blue Cloud” technology on the basis of open standards and open source software which link together computers that are used to deliver Web 2.0 capabilities like mash-ups or mobile commerce. Smaller establishments often lack time and financial resources to purchase, deploy and maintain infrastructure (software, server and storage) for their day-to-day functions. Cloud computing eliminates the requirement of a costly infrastructure. In cloud computing, small businesses can access these resources and expand or shrink services as business needs change. The common pay-as-you-go subscription model is designed to let them easily add or remove services.
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Expert Opinion
‘Patient is the Centre of our Universe’ Cytecare Cancer Hospitals are engaged in providing quality cancer care in India, Africa and other Asian countries. Talking to Elets News Network (ENN), Girish Kulkarni, CIO, Cytecare Cancer Hospitals, gives an overview on how the hospital network plans to revolutionise cancer treatment through personalised care and the role of technology in achieving this novel aim. What are the main objectives of the Cytecare? Cytecare is driven by three main objectives: fighting cancer the right way, offering personalised care and designing care plans and protocols focussed on specific body parts and organs. Providing personalised care with emphasis on patient care is central to our vision. For us, patient is the centre of our universe, be it systems or processes -- operationally, clinically and technically. Our care plans and protocols are focussed on specific body parts and organs.
Cytecare is partnering with various technology and medical equipment players for its hospital. How cloud deployment models (private, public, and hybrid) weigh in implementing strategic decisions? Also, brief us about the kind of technologies being adapted by the hospital to support its operations? From the business perspective, we use Private Cloud for all our core and internal patient-facing application services because they are more reliable, available, flexible and secure. The management of this cloud is easier too. We use Public Cloud for all our Non-Core, external and fringe application services. We have tried to build a Hybrid
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Network which is giving us all the flexibility to use, manage and charge back along with a greater level of security and control. However, there is no ‘one-size-fitsall’ model. All the decisions are purely driven by business requirements.
Diagnostic radiology has been playing an important role in the provision of healthcare. What’s your opinion on it? How Cytecare is implementing this in its portfolio of offerings? Our diagnostic radiology is tightly integrated with nuclear medicine and our radiation planning applications and systems. This gives a 360-degree view to the care providers for faster, better, effective and informed outcomebased decisions at the point of care. The next logical step for us is to add machine learning and cognitive capabilities into our stack for improving our diagnosis capabilities. These are the tools to enhance the quality of work our radiologists are doing. It’s an extension of their analytical and decision-making capabilities. We should be there in the next two-three quarters.
Compared to other industries, technology has been significantly under-utilised in the healthcare industry to improve operational efficiency. What measures should be taken by
the sector to adopt the cloud computing technology and perfect diagnostic radiology? Cloud has caught up but is majorly on the fringe of the application service stack. Healthcare providers have been extremely cautious on moving the Core Application Service stack to the Public Cloud. The greater movement has been around deployment of large Private and Hybrid Cloud service stack. The Public Cloud deployments are surely catching up there at the top. Also, the standards and regulations, including governance framework from the state, play a major role here in reassuring the businesses to adopt the Public Cloud.
What are the challenges faced in leveraging cloud computing and diagnostic radiology for healthcare in India? I feel that there is a serious dearth of quality human resources in diagnostic radiology services in India. Machine learning and cognitive capabilities will be able to leapfrog the existing capabilities and quality to greater heights. However, there is not much specifically happening in the cognitive space, which is easy to deploy and adapt. It is still evolving. However, all these technologies are good to deploy or adopt. Any investment on technology has to be looked at critically to ensure that this doesn’t add to the cost of service to the patient.
Expert Opinion
Cloud Computing Offering Innovation to Healthcare:
Sagar Hospitals
Healthcare requires continuous and systematic innovation to remain cost effective, efficient and time-bound to provide high-quality services. Cloud Computing is providing a great assistance in making healthcare fast and cost effective by implying technology innovation, says Ramesh Desai, Senior Manager, Information Technology, Sagar Hospitals, in an exclusive conversation with Elets News Network (ENN). What is cloud computing and what are its benefits ? Cloud computing is a new way of delivering computing resources and services. Many managers and experts believe that it can improve health care services, benefit healthcare research, and change the face of health information technology. Cloud computing refers to an on-demand, self-service Internet infrastructure that enables the user to access computing resources anytime from anywhere It is a new model of delivering computing resources, not a new technology. However, compared with conventional computing, this model provides three new advantages: massive computing resources available on demand, elimination of an up-front commitment by users, and payment for use on a short-term basis as needed .
typically the Internet. (2) Platform as a service (PaaS): The development tools (eg, operation systems) are hosted in the cloud and accessed through a browser. With PaaS, developers can build Web applications without installing any tools on their computer, and then deploy those applications without any specialized administrative skills. (3) Infrastructure as a service (IaaS): The cloud user outsources the equipment used to support operations, including storage, hardware, servers, and networking components. The provider owns the equipment and is responsible for housing, running, and maintaining it. The user typically pays on a per-use basis.
Tell us about various models of cloud computing
What is the relevance of cloud computing in the healthcare system?
From a service point of view, cloud computing includes 3 models: software, platform, and infrastructure. (1) Software as a service (SaaS): The applications (eg, EHRs) are hosted by a cloud service provider and made available to customers over a network,
Healthcare requires continuous and systematic innovation to remain cost effective, efficient, and timely, and to provide highquality services. Cloud computing can reduce electronic health record (EHR) startup expenses, such as hardware, software, networking, personnel, and licensing fees,
and therefore will encourage its adoption. Research shows that the biomedical informatics community, especially consortiums that share data and applications, can take advantage of the new computing paradigm. As indicated in some of the papers , data-handling problems, complexity, and expensive or unavailable computational solutions to research problems are major issues in biomedical research data management and analysis. Several informatics innovations have demonstrated that cloud computing has the potential to overcome these difficulties.
What precautions should be taken into account before adopting cloud computing into healthcare system? Despite its several benefits, cloud computing applications also involve several management, technology, security, and legal issues that are required to be addressed. Before adopting it ,one need to discuss the concept of cloud computing, its current applications in healthcare, the challenges and opportunities, and how to implement strategic planning when the organization has decided to move to the new model of service.
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Industry Speak
mCURA – Building Smarter Healthcare IT System The company works towards making healthcare IT smart by transforming desk service to mobility service that includes all hardware and software, as well as trained staff that creates the wow factor for patients, says Madhubala Radhakrishnan M S, Founder & President, mCURA in an interview with Elets News Network (ENN). Excerpts: How is your organisation working over the concept of evolving healthcare IT domain? The current role of healthcare IT is still confined to back office module in majority of the hospitals. It hasn’t been fully implemented in areas like patient service delivery, doctors’ office management, automated order fulfilment, revenue leakage, monitor alerts and patient loyalty building and retention, where it is required more.
We seek to ensure the value of healthcare IT is felt across the system that will especially enhance patient/ doctor experience and generate revenue. For instance, when a patient visits any hospital the number of queues that he or she has to stand in are -- one, registration or consultation billing; two, waiting for their turn to consult the doctor asking assistants repeatedly to know how many patients before their turn; three, waiting in pharmacy queue to get medicines (and may decide to get from outside); four, waiting for any lab tests or procedures (again may decide to get from outside). For a 15-minute visit to the doctor, they have to spend over two hours inside the hospital. All
this without touching the major problem of paper records. mCURA works towards making healthcare IT smart by transforming desk service to mobility service that includes all hardware and software, as well as trained staffs (optional) that creates the ‘WOW’ factor for patients.
How are you attempting to achieve healthcare industry goals with cloud computing? With the help of cloud computing our agenda is to remove the current major barriers of the healthcare industry, such as: a) Huge ITcapex b) Multiple vendor management (hardware from vendor A, software from vendor B, licenses from vendor C etc... c) Trained manpower and adoption d) Patient records continuity and to achieve the goal of digital health at minimal cost across all hospitals/ clinics, irrespective of their size, to provide a better patient care.
What are the various initiatives taken by mCura to use cloud computing effectively? Our initiatives can be classified as bringing “ZeroCapex”model for hospitals and clinics to increase adoption, integrated modules that take service delivery to the next level by bringing transparency and improving work flow, making doctors utilise clinical outcomes, increasing
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Industry Speak
revenues for health providers and securing clinical data at the right time and right place with patient authentication.
What are the relevant factors of cloud computing that can help grow the healthcare industry? Scalability , data storage and security, authenticated access, medical image exchange, stability, data research and development, cost effectiveness, flexible and expendable framework, convenient information sharing and
right information at the right place can save people’s life.
How is your organisation offering best cloud computing solutions to the healthcare industry? mCURA has implemented the firstof-its-kind smart OPD at a major hospital in Delhi with 35,000 patient transactions a month using cloud computing. This takes the healthcare IT to the next level, as we have provided hardware, technology platform,
trained manpower completely as service with zero upfront cost to hospitals. Details of deployment include hardware wall display, NFC enabled HP tablets outside every OPD chamber, 70 ipads and wi-fi printers in every OPD room, 16 card printing machines on all the counters and four heavy duty printers. Our technology platform includes modules right from appointments, queue management, e-wallet or cash cards with payment gateway and status, medical records management and e-prescription delivery, order management and continuum of care. We also offer uniformly trained staff capable of offering basic service of patient guidance to assigning 1:1 clinical secretary to each doctor to enter and manage their patient records through ipads with the option of multimedia medical advice. The real use of cloud computing is demonstrated by providing real time status update on queue, patient medical record view or access, revenue inputs to doctors from their mobile phone anywhere at anytime.
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Healthcare Solutions
Palladium: Transforming Lives Through Linking Social and Financial Impact Palladium has been successfully delivering solutions to stakeholders including investors, corporations, governments and non-State actors to devise mechanisms that blend private capital with public funds to support the achievement of enduring common good.
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alladium is a leading international project management and consulting company specialising in strategy development and execution, feasibility studies, designs, and the implementation, management and evaluation of both government and commercial large-scale projects for government agencies, private clients and international development agencies.
Palladium – Key Functions and Services Palladium is a global leader in the development and delivery of Positive Impact - the point where commercial and social goals are inextricably linked, and social and financial impacts are equally considered. We work with investors, corporations, governments, and non-profit organisations to deliver solutions that transform lives. Through this work with businesses, communities, societies and economies, we help to create enduring value. Over the past 50 years, Palladium has implemented more than 700 largescale multi-year programmes in 120 countries worldwide. We currently have 2,500 personnel in our 30 major offices. We have 30 years of continuous experience working effectively with central, state and district governments in India, predominantly in the health sector, including 13 years of experience in implementing public-
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private partnership (PPP) social marketing and social franchising RMNCH+A activities in Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Uttarakhand, Odisha and Bihar.
Understanding Development Impact Bonds Palladium, supported by Convergence (the first and only blended finance platform), has led the development of a maternal and newborn health (MNH) intervention aimed at improving MNH outcomes in the state of Rajasthan using an innovative financing mechanism known as a Development Impact Bond. Development Impact Bonds are result-based contracts in which private investors provide prefinancing for social programmes, while public sector agencies pay back investors their principal plus a return if and only if, these programmes succeed in delivering social outcomes. Development Impact Bonds provide a much greater incentive for feedback loops to collect and monitor data that supports informed decision-making during programme implementation by the service provider. Palladium is working with investors, outcome funders, the Government of Rajasthan, service providers, legal counsel in both the United Kingdom (UK) and India, and a UK-based leading proponent of impact bonds to finalise the design of
this tool so that the investor funds can be raised, and the implementation activities can commence as quickly as possible thereafter. By tying investor’s financial returns to the achievement of social outcomes, Development Impact Bonds create a distinct stakeholder group with a strong incentive to ensure effective and efficient delivery of outcomes. Private investors whose financial returns are tied to achieving social outcomes make the process of monitoring and ultimately achieving the agreed outcome targets more rigorous. These types of mechanisms are therefore a very concrete articulation of Palladium’s vision for the future – a world where private capital and private markets and private business aren’t just encouraged to work with public and non-state agencies towards common goals, but where tools exist that give these sometimes uncomfortable bedfellows a space that necessitates this collaboration, and where results and real impact aren’t the ‘nice to haves’ – they’re the reason for our existence! For more information on our work please contact Dr Amit Bhanot, Senior Regional Health Advisor at amit-bhanot@thepalladiumgroup. com or Peter Vanderwal, Innovative Financing. Lead at peter.vanderwal@ thepalladiumgroup.com.
ASIA’S FIRST MONTHLY MAGAZINE ON e-GOVERNANCE
ASIA’S FIRST MONTHLY MAGAZINE ON ICT IN EduCATION
A quALITY MAGAZINE ON BANkING ANd FINANCE
Emergency Ambulance Services
Ziqitza Healthcare Ltd: Embracing Innovative Partnerships to Offer Holistic Solutions Ziqitza Healthcare Ltd has been the frontrunner in the EMS by not only offering quality services but also by experimenting with newer systems and partnerships. As a result, it has emerged as one of the three top EMS providers that serve different geographies and patients by implementing four business models, ranging from variable to PPP model. In an exclusive interview, Naresh Jain, CEO, Ziqitza Healthcare Ltd, shares details about recent feats and challenges with Harshal Desai of Elets News Network (ENN). What is the state of Emergency Medical Services (EMS) industry in India? EMS is not just about transporting patients from one place to another but also includes the post-ambulance delivery care of patients once they are admitted to any particular hospital. Places, where patients can be admitted quickly in case of an emergency are very limited, especially in the rural areas of states like Rajasthan, Odisha and Jharkhand. One has to actually travel about 100 kilometres to admit a patient. This is certainly a big problem. ‘Ambulanceon-time’ service is necessary, but one also needs hospitals nearby where the patient can be treated immediately. Ziqitza Healthcare Limited (ZHL) is into the delivery part of this system where we are contacted – there are quite a few phone numbers – to pick up the patient. We are the first organisation to start an ambulance service with a centralised call centre, which can be reached to call an ambulance available nearby. We started our operations in Mumbai with ‘1298’ as our emergency ambulance number. We built up a network of about 40 to 50 ambulances in the city. We also tried to get other people on board, but due to quality issues of other service providers the
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Key Takeaways • About 25 states already have EMS service where the government provides infrastructure, including call centres, ambulances, etc. and companies like ZHL runs the service • NRHM funds the projects in association with the state governments collaboration did not work for us. We, of course, could not compromise on our standards. Therefore, the industry was fragmented and we were among the few players to get into the industry in a systematic way. This was the time when even the Health Ministry of India was planning to start a centralised ambulance service in various states. Andhra Pradesh was first such state where an emergency network was set up and the concept was propagated across the country. Currently, about 25 states already have EMS service. In most of the cases, the government provides infrastructure including call centres, ambulances, etc, and companies like us run the service. The National Rural Health
Mission (NRHM) funds the projects in association with the state governments. Further, in many states ‘102’ network is also operated, which caters to pregnant women and newborns. This is a separate service altogether.
How many states are you currently working with? Please apprise us about your operations as well. We are currently operating in Kerala, Odisha, Punjab and are in the process of rolling out our services in
Emergency Ambulance Services
Jharkhand and Madhya Pradesh. We are one of the three big players in the domain. We have four verticals. One is the variable model – like a taxi service. A patient calls us, we pick him or her up, drop the patient to the hospital and collect the money. We are present in three geographies, namely Kerala, Mumbai and Bihar in this vertical. We own the ambulance in this vertical. Second is the outsourcing model. Several companies and hospitals have outsourced our ambulances. There are organisations which do not want to own and run the ambulances. So, we do the work of running and maintaining the ambulance service for them – right from the labour, repairs, maintenance and upkeep of the ambulance remains our responsibility. In some cases, hospitals have their own fleet and we simply run the system. Third is the PPP model where we work with the governments and run the entire ambulance services for the states on behalf of the state government. And the fourth vertical includes our international operations. We have expanded our operations in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) recently and are exploring other countries as well. We are also glad to update that in association with the National Highway Authority of India and ICICI Lombard, ZHL operates Advanced Life Support (ALS) and Basic Life Support (BLS) ambulances on the Gurgaon-Jaipur stretch of NH-8 to respond to accident cases.
How aggressively governments are working on such emergency medical services? There are some governments which are not working sensitively on such projects and the situation is pretty sad. However, there are some states where even Chief Ministers are themselves getting involved in such projects to ensure the best possible services to common man. Some
Ziqitza Healthcare Ltd (ZHL) - Key Achievements • Started operations in Mumbai with ‘1298’ as emergency ambulance number • Currently operating in Bihar, Kerala, Odisha, Punjab, Jharkhand and Madhya Pradesh • One of the big three players in the EMS domain. • Runs & maintains ambulances for organisations that do not want to own and run them • Expanded operation in the UAE & is also exploring other countries • In association with the NHAI and ICICI Lombard, ZHL operates ALS and BLS ambulances on the Gurgaon-Jaipur stretch of NH-8 • Ziqitza Gulf Medical Response and Ambulance Services has won a tender to serve the upcoming Al Maktoum International Airport in Dubai state governments do understand that a centralised emergency service mechanism is very important for the masses. Such an emergency service is not a luxury, rather a necessity. If the government is not able to provide it, it is its failure.
What are your plans for Dubai expansion. Which are the other countries ZHL is planning to foray into? Our subsidiary Ziqitza Gulf Medical Response and Ambulance Services has won a tender to serve the upcoming Al Maktoum International Airport in Dubai. We will be licensed by Dubai Corporation for Ambulance Services (DCAS). This is the first time a private player in the EMS category has made a foray into the Dubai market. As part of the tender, we will be providing ambulance back-up service for the Al Maktoum International Airport where construction is currently underway. We are also looking at other regions including Sri Lanka, Malaysia and some other Southeast Asian countries. Africa is another region, where we are planning to start our operations. Things are in the pipeline and we may start our operations anytime soon.
What are the challenges that you face while running your operations?
Infrastructure and awareness are the two significant factors. We need to educate people that whenever they hear the ambulance siren, they need to vacate the roads for the vehicle to pass. We need proper roads so that the transportation time can be reduced. Hospital infrastructure is also crucial. We come across cases on a regular basis where patients are not admitted easily in emergency. We need actual hospitals in rural area to avoid transporting a patient to about 100 km to admit him or her.
What will drive business growth for your organisation in India? There is a huge scope for EMS player in India. There is one NHAI Project, which aims to place ambulances on highways; there are states which also may join other states to have a centralised EMS mechanism in their states, rebidding of projects. There are 30 states in India and most of them are equivalent in sizes to some of the western countries. Further big corporate players are nowadays planning to have ambulances in their premises. This is when we come into the picture. Government regulations also mandate companies with more than 500 employees to have ambulances in their premises mandatorily. This is an area where we will engage ourselves.
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2nd Annual
Conference Outcome
Healthcare SUMMIT RAJASTHAN
Trailblazers of Healthcare Revolution Leading the revolution of radical ideas to effect change at the grassroots level, ministers, bureaucrats and thought leaders gathered at the Healthcare Summit Rajasthan - 2016 to decide on the way forward for the industry.
Introductory Image
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2nd Annual
Inaugural Session
Healthcare SUMMIT RAJASTHAN
Conference Outcome
‘Government Upgrading 58 Medical Colleges Into Super Specialty Hospitals’ Earlier, we had only one AIIMS (hospital) in New Delhi catering to the needs of the entire country. Former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee felt the need of having more such hospitals to handle the pressure of critical and tertiary care and announced to open six more AIIMS in the country. One AIIMS was allotted to Rajasthan. We have identified 58 government medical colleges across the country and the Government of India is trying to upgrade them into super specialty hospitals within a time frame. We are committed to open 18 new AIIMS and out of them six have been already inaugurated. Moreover, the foundation of three others will be laid down soon. We have invited proposal from the state governments in this regard. Our Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s target is to provide free and accessible healthcare to all. The health ministry under his visionary leadership is taking all necessary steps to ensure quality healthcare services in every nook and corner of the country. I am proud to say that efficient services are being delivered to the public using IT in the country’s remotest areas.
Faggan Singh Kulaste
Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare, Government of India
There is an acute shortage of doctors in India. By 2017, 10,000 MBBS seats will be added in the medical colleges across the country. The number of seats will be increased through the National Eligibility Entrance Test (NEET).
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2nd Annual
Conference Outcome
Healthcare SUMMIT RAJASTHAN
Inaugural Session
CM Eager to Empower People with eHealth Cards eGov is needed in all sectors, including health sector. In line with the Government of India’s Digital India Programme, our Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje is of the view that eHealth card should be provided to the people of the state. Rajasthan is the biggest state of India from geographical point of view with 7.5 crore people living here. The state government is running 17,000 government medical units. Every day, they deal with 2.5 lakh patients in OPD and 2,500 patients are admitted in IPD. Information Technology (IT) in healthcare is the need of the hour. Trend of illness should be identified through IT. Telemedicine is possible with the help of technology. We have introduced ‘Kuposhan Watch’ and mobile applications for recording the inspections of officials. ‘Kuposhan Watch’ is a software which is used at malnutrition treatment centres (MTCs). We have introduced ‘e-Upkaran’ for biomedical maintenance and also have the ‘Bhamashah Swasthya Bima Yojana’.
Rajendra Rathore
Minister of Medical, Health and Family Welfare, Government of Rajasthan
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We have also introduced an integrated ambulance system called Jeevan Vahini which is the firstof-its kind in India. Through Mobile Saghan Nirikshan Abhiyaan (MSNA) mobile application, more than 15,000 inspections have been done all over Rajasthan in six months.
2nd Annual
Inaugural Session
Healthcare SUMMIT RAJASTHAN
Conference Outcome
I​nformation Technology Effective in Improving Quality of Healthcare The outreach of primary healthcare has substantially increased in the last decade but quality still remains a challenge. When I say quality, it means - quality of infrastructure, quality of skills, timeliness of services, etc. Speaking for Rajasthan, we have used IT very effectively in various sectors and sub-sectors of health, ranging from payments of various kinds, including to our field functionaries like Ashas and also to the beneficiaries of Janani Suraksha Yojana. This summit is an excellent platform for sharing experiences, ideas and the insights that are useful for everybody.
Veenu Gupta
Principal Secretary, Department of Medical, Health and Welfare , Government of Rajasthan
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2nd Annual
Conference Outcome
Healthcare SUMMIT RAJASTHAN
Inaugural Session
Joint Vision on PPP Key to Formation of Better Healthcare Policies The vision of both public and private sectors must be one to deliver better healthcare policies and strong partnership. We need to clarify ourselves as government representatives to support the PPP model and invite private players to participate in healthcare programmes and initiatives. We should accept our weak points, such as information technology, so that we can take support from the private sector and close the loopholes. Let the private sector keep control along with us, let’s keep them monitoring along with us. We need to detect certain problems that are faced by the PPP model due to lack of proper attention.
Naveen Jain
Mission Director (NHM), Department of Medical, Health & Family Welfare & CEO, State Health Assurance Agency, Government of Rajasthan
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2nd Annual
Inaugural Session
Healthcare SUMMIT RAJASTHAN
Conference Outcome
Rajasthan Proactively Engaged in Improving Healthcare Facilities The Government of Rajasthan has taken proactive steps to improve healthcare facilities in the state. In a country like India, private sector is the first point of contact for 60 per cent of population. We need to engage and develop private sector partnerships. Partnership is probably the core theme for the US Agency for International Development (USAID) to engage with India in different kind of ways. USAID is working with India from many decades to support healthcare.
Ambassador Jonathan S Addleton Mission Director to India, USAID
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Healthcare SUMMIT RAJASTHAN
Medical Service Partner
Gold Partner
Inaugural Session
Power
Prime Partner
The Bhamashah Swasthaya Beema Yojna, being operated in the state of Rajasthan, is probably the best health scheme operated anywhere. Â I must compliment Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje, the Health Minister and all the officials for their great efforts in making the scheme a great success. We at the New India Assurance Company Limited are extremely proud and privileged to be part of this scheme, to be involved in operating the scheme and bringing healthcare benefits to the people of the state.
Silver Partner
G Srinivasan Chairman and Managing Director, The New India Assurance Co. Ltd
Health BeneďŹ t Partner
The New India Assurance Co. Ltd. for Best Healthcare Insurance Provider in India
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Tech
2nd Annual
Healthcare SUMMIT RAJASTHAN
Conference Outcome
Sikkim Shining Example of how Governments can Drive Healthcare In India, more than 60 per cent of healthcare is provided by the private sector. In contrast, more than 90 per cent of healthcare in Sikkim is provided by the government. The private sector is a very small player there. Mostly private and secondary healthcare is managed by the government of Sikkim. To allay public concern, we banned smoking in public places in 2010 and we also banned chewing of tobacco, gutka and paan parag. What has really helped us is the vision of the Chief Minister. He is really keen to see that the health sector in Sikkim is well-developed.
Dr Kumar Bhandari
Secretary (Health Care, Human Services & Family Welfare), Department of Health & Family Welfare, Government of Sikkim
Public-Private Partnership Model Future of Indian Health System Regarding PPP we had a good experience in Uttrakhand. We had our public health care (PHC) system under the National Urban Health Mission based on the PPP where private partners were NGO’s. Government officials accept the private sector with positive intent. If private partners come to us, we give them proper opportunity to serve. We have learnt a lot from Rajasthan as it is one of the leading states in healthcare. We all should look forward to PPP as it is the future of our country. The partnership between the government and private sector should be positive.
Neeraj Kharwal
Mission Director (NHM), Department of Health & Family Welfare, Government of Uttarakhand
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2nd Annual
Conference Outcome
Healthcare SUMMIT RAJASTHAN
Thought Leaders Dr Jitendar Sharma
Director-WHO Collaborating Center for Priority Medical Devices & Health Technology Policy, NHSRC, MoHFW, New Delhi The world is a mix of workers, planners and decision makers. Decision makers feel very much empowered looking at information because it tells them about administration, and how to handle things in a better way. We can make huge innovations if technology is transformed into knowledge technology.” “We always go after the number of patients handled or we lay emphasis on providing free diagnostic services with an older technology. It is important for us that we should now adopt predictive analysis that can alert us in advance on epidemic outbreaks. This is what transforming information technology into knowledge technology is.
Dr Gayatri V Mahindroo
Dr Priya Balasubramaniam (Balu) Kakkar
Director, National Accreditation Boards for Hospitals and Healthcare Providers
Senior Public Health Specialist and Scientist / Director- PHFI-Royal Norwegian Embassy Universal Health Care Initiative
For ensuring proper healthcare services, it is important to emphasise on its quality. IT or the PPP model has an important role to play in this regard. IT can handle many issues like medication errors and it can prevent them as well… There is still room for errors. Integration of technology can bring down the number of errors.
We were instituted to build capacity in public health in the country and focus on couple of areas. We conduct public health research which involves epidemiology, infectious diseases, etc. We assist state governments by providing them with more evident information that helps them in making decisions for many programmes.
M V Padma Srivastava
Professor, Department of Neurology, AIIMS, New Delhi India has a distinction in staggering number of strokes. According to ICMR, in 2010, India recorded 1.65 million strokes and it’s second most cause of death in the country. Strokes are also the first common cause of disability in India. Strokes are now happening more amongst the young populace. We have youngsters with heart attacks, diabetes and strokes. According to various publications, almost 30 per cent of all strokes are happening in young Indians. So, strokes among young people are extremely important societal concern. The ground reality is different despite having all advancements in healthcare. The first basic requirement to deal with strokes is time because every minute which lapses after a blood vessel is clogged is crucial for survival.
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2nd Annual
Healthcare SUMMIT RAJASTHAN
Panel Discussion
Conference Outcome
Innovative Healthcare
Dr T S Selvavinayagam Addl. Director of Public Health, MMC/ TNHSP/DPH, Department of Health & Family Welfare, Government of Tamil Nadu “One of the innovative schemes in Tamil Nadu is the ‘CM Insurance Scheme’, which is running for over 8 years, covering around 3.5 crore families, with TCS as partner. We also have an analytical model known as ‘State Health Data Resource Center’ with Accenture as partner.”
Dr Soma Rani
District Family Welfare Officer, District Health Officer, Chandigarh Administration U T Chandigarh “Our work is to focus on how to make progress in healthcare and family welfare sector with existing resources. Whether it is human resource or infrastructure, we have adopted a strategic planning cycle to collect data and progress according to it.”
Dr Jitendra Mehta
Programme Manager, ASHA, Intersectoral Convergence and Community Participation, State Health Society, NHM, J&K “There were several challenges like language barriers and geographical diversity in implementing the ‘ASHA’ programme in Jammu and Kashmir. After seven rounds of training, the officials were appointed on senior posts to monitor and implement the programme effectively.”
Dr C M Tripathi
Deputy Director, Directorate of Health Services, Department of Health & Family Welfare, Government of Madhya Pradesh “We have developed a timebound online system in our state to register any new clinical establishment. The system is accessible on mobile devices as well. For women healthcare, we are taking significant steps like organising camps.”
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2nd Annual
Conference Outcome
Healthcare SUMMIT RAJASTHAN Devinder Kumar
Consultant, Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojna, Himachal Pradesh
“Under the Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana Plus, we provide coverage of 1.75 lakh to all the RSBY card holders. We provide cardiac surgery, neurosurgery, radiation oncology, trauma and cancer treatment under the scheme.”
Nitesh Shah
Asst. Director, RSBY, Gujarat “We are using a mother and child tracking system called eMamta to monitor and supervise reproductive and child health activities. One is truck and logistics inventory management system, and another is the Chiranjeevi scheme for pregnant women.”
Dr Priya Ranjan Avinash Senior Psychiatrist, Epsyclinic
“To cater to the shortage of psychiatrists and psychologists, we came up with this innovative technology of epysch through which we developed a highly trained team of professionals in different mental health streams, neurosurgery, radiation oncology, trauma and cancer treatment.”
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Panel Discussion Dr Shashi Kant
Director, National Health Mission, Government of Punjab “We have taken up healthcare kiosks in Punjab and setting them up in temporary slums where construction workers or beggars live. We are providing all care to pregnant women, taking care of immunisation and providing basic medicines.”
Sumit Datta
Sense Head- GVK EMRI, Rajasthan “In 2005, we started with an innovation called ‘108’ in Andhra Pradesh and currently operating it in 15 states and two UTs. We are serving 26,000 emergencies per day. The ambulance count across India is 10,600.”
Dr Monica Tripathi
DGM SIFPSA, Health & Family Welfare Department, Government of Uttar Pradesh “The Sampoorna’ project was launched under the NPCDCS umbrella for screening of cervical cancer and to treat precancerous lesion. Spread over 28 districts, “Sampoorna clinics” have been established at district women hospitals and selected community health centres for screening of diseases among women. To roll out the programme, an MoU has been signed between NHM, SIFPSA and PSI.”
2nd Annual
Healthcare SUMMIT RAJASTHAN
Round Table Discussion
Conference Outcome
Private Sector Needs to Contribute More for the Development of Healthcare Sector
D
uring a round-table discussion -- ‘Role of Hospitals in Healthcare Development’ -- Dr B R Soni, Chief Managing Director, Soni Group of Hospital, Jaipur, said: “It really is surprising that 75 per cent of the healthcare industry is being run by private hospitals and the rest 25 per cent by government hospitals. The private sector contributed a lot for the development of healthcare sector and needs to contribute much more in future. The only constraint with private healthcare is that it is very costly for common people.” Navneet Agarwal, Executive Director–Medipulse Hospital and Director–JIET Group of Colleges, Medipulse Hospital, Jodhpur, sought to highlight the need to choose between quality or quantity as the prime focus. “In addition to this, we must try to establish satellite centres of our hospitals in rural areas. It will help the patients in primary treatment and in case of critical illness, they can be transferred to the main hospital for effective and timely treatment of disease.” Participating in summit discussions, Tej Kumar Sharma, COO, Metro Group of Hospitals, Jaipur, suggested that the government should “provide land, subsidised electricity and only then can any public-private partnership can survive”. Talking about the need to spread public awareness about health insurance, Dr Kamal Goyal, Director, Indowestern Brain & Spine Hospital, Jaipur, said: “We should educate people about health insurance because in Rs. 5,000 you can get a coverage of about 5 lakh. We should advertise that in each and every hospital.”
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2nd Annual
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Powered by
Healthcare Innovation through Public Private Partnership
Registrati Prime Partner
vice Partner
Technical Partner
WISH Foundation Award for Exemplary Contribution in Healthcare Sector
We started in July and within three months we have deployed about 500 private sector medical and paramedical staff in Rajasthan. The number of people accessing the public healthcare facilities has increased tremendously. The second thing, on which the government is trying to focus is how to bring the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) and infant mortality rate down. It can only be done if we increase the coverage of the services. We have conducted over 7,000 immunisation programmes. 5,330 institutional deliveries and reached out to about 11,000 pregnant women.
Partner
Silver Partner
Nutrition Partner
Himani Sethi Head of Programmes, Wish Foundation
Ass
neďŹ t Partner
Exhibitors
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2nd Annual
Healthcare SUMMIT RAJASTHAN
Powe
Conference Outcome
Healthcare Experts
Medical Service Partner
AIIMS, New Delhi Award for Best Exemplary Contribution in Neurology in Healthcare Sector
Prime Partner
Te
Tata Memorial Hospital Award for Best Exemplary Contribution in Oncology in Healthcare Sector
My job is to talk about oncology and how oncology needs to be one of the priority when we deal with our patients in the clinic. Our main focus is on handling these issues in healthcare. We tried to improve patient care at our own centre for lung cancer patients. We have developed a procedure, wherein such tests can be done from the comfort of the home. Dr. Kumar Prabhash President, Indian Cooperative Oncology Network, Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai
Gold Partner
Silver Partner
Health BeneďŹ t Partner
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2nd Annual
Conference Outcome
Healthcare SUMMIT RAJASTHAN
Medical Service Partner
Gold Partner
Prime Partner
Techni
Silver Partner
We are an ambulatory company which has its origin in the US with three of our six offices being in Mumbai, Ahmedabad and Bangalore in India.
Health BeneďŹ t Partner
At eClinicalWorks, doctors can chart the patient’s history in real time where they can have quick synopsis. Importantly, technology at any given point of time should be available on the cloud which is accessible anytime, anywhere and it should be platform agnostic. We service more than 70 per cent of the population from the United States. More than 200 million patient data is stored in our private cloud and 115,000 doctors use our platform. Aakash Shah Director Sales, National and International Market, eClinicalWorks
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Supporting Pa
2nd Annual
Healthcare SUMMIT RAJASTHAN
Conference Outcome
Without participation of private partners in the public private partnership (PPP) model, the aim of quality healthcare in the country cannot be accomplished. A research programme -- ‘Stand-up india’ -- has been launched to strengthen the healthcare sector. Rakesh Shukla Circle Head, Punjab National Bank, Jaipur
Punjab National Bank Award for Financial Service Provider in Healthcare Sector
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2nd Annual
Conference Outcome
Healthcare SUMMIT RAJASTHAN
“India is getting digitised and the young people are transforming themselves. The country is geared up and keenly looking forward to e-initiatives in every sphere and the healthcare department is no more an exception. “We are already witnessing and experiencing the e-requirement and need of government departments as well as the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.” Rajeev Sharma DGM, Bank of Baroda
Bank of Baroda Award for Financial Service Provider in Healthcare Sector
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2nd Annual
Healthcare SUMMIT RAJASTHAN
Conference Outcome
“Healthcare is all about prevention of diseases and promoting the concept of well being. Regular health monitoring is important and we all should lay emphasis on this. Health monitoring will help us in reducing the burden of diseases. We, at American Megatrends, build a set of medical portables and wearables which are affordable and can be used anywhere around the globe. Using these devices, you can monitor all health care parameters like blood pressure, temperature, glucose, hemoglobin, cholesterol, etc. We are highly influenced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “Make in India” initiative. We want to take this concept across the globe. India can do innovative stuff.” American Megatrends India Pvt Ltd for Most Innovative New Product
Sridharan Mani Director and CEO, American Megatrends India Pvt Ltd
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nking Partners
Development Partner
Deepak Venugopal Group Head - New Ventures & Program Development Narayana Health, Jaipur
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Host Partners
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CSR Partner
Narayana Multispeciality Hospital, Jaipur Award for Best CSR Contribution in Healthcare Sector
Maharashtra is running 205 projects under CSR, Karnataka 152, West Bengal 123 and Tamil Nadu 122. As a CSR professional, I believe that money allocated for CSR should be used at the right place. We should promote awareness about CSR projects and tell the common man how we are helping the society. We want to earn social wealth so that people remember us long after we are gone.
Startup Partner
Dheeraj Bhatnagar Head – CSR, Narayana Multispeciality Hospital, Jaipur
2nd Annual
ner
Healthcare SUMMIT RAJASTHAN Startup Partner
Development Partner
Conference Outcome
CSR Partner
g Partners
artners
Development Partner EMRI
Startup Partner
The key mandate of India-Norway partnership is that it provides a catalytic and strategic support for trying out innovations in the area of newborn and child health and it is for the state government and national government to decide in a span of three to four years whether to scale them up or do away with them. Dr Harish Kumar, Project Director, Norway India Project Partnership
Knowledge Partner
Knowledge Partner
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2nd Annual
Conference Outcome
Healthcare SUMMIT RAJASTHAN
ePsyclinic is an online mental wellness programme, one of the most trusted mental wellness provider of India today. I want to majorly focus on the mental health problem in India. One out every five people is going to have one or the other mental illness issue, that means 20 out of every 100 people suffer from these issues. ePsyclinic uses online, app and telecommunication platforms to provide access to the best psychiatric, counselling and best psychological care at the comfort of your home. Using technology, we can supply care to people. As a result, 99 per cent who seek help from us reported feeling better. Shipra Dawar Founder and CEO, ePsyClinic
ePsyClinic Healthcare Private Limited for Champ Start-Up of Healthcare
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Banking Partners
CSR Partner 2nd Annual
Healthcare SUMMIT RAJASTHAN
Development Partner
Conference Outcome
Startup Partner
ers
MRI We are a medical equipment maintenance company, basically into medical assessment management. Our system is cloud computing-based. We visit primary health centres and general hospitals involves visiting in the remotest areas to impart services. Since it’s challenging to maintain equipment in remote areas, our experts map equipments and allocate them a unique ID number. Ajay Dang General Manager- Operation, Kirloskar Technologies (P) Ltd.
Knowledge Partner
GVK EMRI Award for Best Emergency Service Provider
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2nd Annual
Conference Outcome
owered by
Healthcare SUMMIT RAJASTHAN
Medi Assist Insurance TPA Private Limited Awarded for Best TPA Services
We at Medi Assist focus on making health insurance benefits accessible and affordable. For 15 years, we have been serving close to 11 crore Indians. When it comes to transparency, the cost and quality of healthcare and health insurance in India is still opaque. If we talk about trust in the context of Indian healthcare, we all know that healthcare is a constitutional right, but in a complex nation like ours where medical expenses are high services and infrastructure are in a poor state. Health as a right seems to be a distant dream if we do not solve the financial paradigm associated with it.
Registration Prashant Jhaveri Head, Products and Strategy, Medi Assist
Technical Partner
Nutrition Partner
Principal Banking Partners
PSU Partner
Development Pa
In three years, ACF-India and FHF aim to scale up their interventions from 200 villages to 1,000 villages located in 12 high burden districts of three states -- Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Maharashtra. ACF hosts programmes to save the lives of children affected by severe acute malnutrition and to develop long-term sources of income, creating self-sufficiency. Our ultimate goal is to create a Hunger Free India.
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Associate Partners
Host Partners Healthcare Conference 2nd Annual
SUMMIT RAJASTHAN
Outcome
n CSR Partner
ncipal Banking Partners
Leadership Award to George Kuruvilla, CMD, BECIL
rtner
We, at BECIL, created a device that can provide nearly three set of services which can cover nearly 80 per cent of diagnostic required in the country. Wherever there is no power supply or connectivity, handheld devices can be used to profile the blood‌ Doctors can prescribe medication to a person sitting in a remote location or advise if he needs to referred to a hospital.
Startup Partner Development Partner George Kuruvilla, CMD, BECIL
Partners
EMRI As a diagnostic company, we help people to assess the problem and its intensity. For predictive analysis and for ensuring knowledge technology, we have developed a device -- I Breast Exam-- to detect cancer. We are working on the root cause of the problems among women who are suffering from cancer. Mihir Shah, Founder and CEO, UE Lifesciences
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Conference Outcome
artner
Development Partner
Startup Partner
e Partners
EMRI
nowledge Partner
Our focus is chronic non-communicable diseases like diabetes, hypertension, obesity. At NanoHealth, we provide health management to the patient with low cost service devices to help in proper screening. We keep all records and monitor patient’s for proper healthcare. For incorporating eHealth and predictive analysis, we have designed a clinical algorithm which assigns score to patients and alerts them about the next screening or doctor visit. Dr Ashfaq Ali Mohammad, Medical Officer, Nanocare Health Services Pvt Ltd.
Knowledge Partner
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2nd Annual
Conference Outcome Exhibitors Healthcare SUMMIT RAJASTHAN
Associate Partners Supporting Partners
EMRI Exhibitors
g Partners
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Conference Outcome
Healthcare SUMMIT RAJASTHAN
Gold Partner
E
Silver Partner
Supporting Partners
Health BeneďŹ t Partner
Agatsa Awarded as Best Healthcare Innovator
Supporting P
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2nd Annual
Healthcare SUMMIT RAJASTHAN
Conference Outcome
Leadership Awards
Dr Kumar Bhandari Secretary (Health Care, Human Services & Family Welfare) Department of Health & Family Welfare, Government of Sikkim
Neeraj Kharwal Mission Director (NHM), Department of Health & Family Welfare, Government of Uttarakhand
Government of Andhra Pradesh
Dr Saransh Mittar Mission Director (NHM), National Health Mission Government of Chhattisgarh
Dr T S Selvavinayagam Addl. Director of Public Health, MMC/TNHSP/DPH Department of Health & Family Welfare, Government of Tamil Nadu
Manju Sharma ‘Khanjan’ President, Indian Institute of Human Help, Ajmer
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2nd Annual
Conference Outcome
Healthcare SUMMIT RAJASTHAN
Acknowledging Leaders and Innovators for doing Commendable Job in Healthcare
HORIBA India Pvt Limited for Best Medical Equipment Award
LiveHealth for Health Start-up of the Year
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Bhagwan Mahaveer Cancer Hospital & Research Center (BMCHRC) for Best Healthcare Trust Provider
Uttar Pradesh Health System Strengthening Project for Best eHealth Initiative
SIFPSA for Best mHealth Initiative
2nd Annual
Healthcare SUMMIT RAJASTHAN
Conference Outcome
Telangana State Medical Services & Infrastructure Development Corporation for Best eHealth Initiative
Government of Himachal Pradesh for Innovation in Implementation of Community Based Distribution of Misoprostol in Himachal Pradesh
Urban Baseline Survey, Government of Madhya Pradesh for Best Healthcare Initiative
Government of Tamil Nadu for District Public Health Laboratories In Tamil Nadu
Government of Telangana for Implementation of Community Process of NUHM with MEPMA as Development Partner
Government of Uttar Pradesh for Sampoorna - Comprehensive Women Healthcare Programme
CONGRATULATION WINNERS! Government of Jammu & Kashmir for Unique Institutionalisation of ASHA Programme in the State of J&K
Health & Family Welfare, Department Government of Gujarat for Best Affordable Healthcare Initiative
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Conference Outcome
Healthcare SUMMIT RAJASTHAN
Healthcare Summit Rajasthan - 2016 in Media
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