Feature
At the Cusp of Healthcare Transformation Accessibility for All GE Healthcare is investing significantly to reach out to small radiology centres and entrepreneurs
Future-ready healthcare ecosystems will stand on the roots of accessibility. We are not just preparing to fight a pandemic but also the disease burdens that already exist. For instance, as the point of care shifted to COVID-19 patients, we saw the outbreak exacerbating the Dr Shravan Subramanyam, Managing Director, Wipro GE Healthcare and President & CEO, GE Healthcare South Asia
threat
diseases.
of
non-communicable
With
non-communicable
diseases (NCDs) accounting for nearly 63 per cent of all deaths in India, it’s a healthcare crisis we cannot ignore. From delayed diagnosis to inaccessible screenings, lack of advanced radiology to Covid-induced restrictions, limiting the treatment options for NCD patients,
Strengthening healthcare frontiers The story of Indian healthcare must go
beyond
metros,
including
and
empowering Tier II and Tier III cities. We are now witnessing small radiology entrepreneurs and start-ups fighting the cancer burden in their cities, making significant
progress
in
diagnostic
accessibility. Now, how do we make the latest technologies available to them? Can we look at lucrative investment opportunities in the smaller towns where many radiology start-ups and entrepreneurs are active? All they need is the impetus to help them grow.
the challenges are many. However, in
The
the last two years, we have also seen
transformative in that context and
an acceleration in what the healthcare
we at GE Healthcare are seeing an
system can offer and its potential.
uptake of the latest technology and
The growth trajectory got the muchneeded
fillip
in
PM’s
Ayushman
Bharat Mission with its outlay of Rs 64,180
crore.
Resilient
healthcare,
with provisions for accessibility, calls for deeper structural reforms that cut across geographies. Take, for instance, even as Ayushman Bharat ensured hospitalisation to over 2.2 crore people, India’s healthcare spending remains abysmally low. The question is, how do we strengthen this sector which is expected to reach $372 billion in 2022?
last
two
years
have
been
equipment among small entrepreneurs. Saboo Hospital, Washim, a 60-bed multi-speciality facility, is one such example. Dr Vivek Saboo, the owner of Saboo Hospital, Washim, believes that healthcare issues are not restricted to geographies. The lack of proper diagnostics modalities forces patients to rush to bigger hospitals even for simple diagnoses. Diagnostic modalities at the grassroots are not just critical, rather fundamental to meet the patient needs, closer home.
The gaps are glaring, and they must be
We
addressed now.
reach out to small radiology centres
are
investing
significantly
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