The Hindu Business Line : TN eyes private-public partnership for effective healthcare system

Chennai, Aug. 23 The Tamil Nadu Government has offered to develop preventive and primary healthcare system in the State through public-private partnership.

Citing a primary healthcare centre at Medavakkam, in the outskirts of Chennai, as an example for a successful model, Mr V.K. Subburaj, Principal Secretary, Health & Family Welfare, Government of Tamil Nadu, said the State was open to any such proposals.

Speaking at a seminar on “Delivering Quality Healthcare: Roadmap for Growth”, organised on Saturday by the Confederation of Indian Industry’s Tamil Nadu chapter, he said the State was a role model for the country when it came to primary healthcare system.

As a country of more than one billion people, he said, India needs at least 650 medical colleges for healthcare needs. However, “we have only about 275 colleges and that too concentrated in the South”. According to him, the Government is planning to open more colleges in the State. “It will happen only over a period as, unlike engineering colleges, medical colleges require a lot of investment,” he said.

Today, with the country marching forward, the healthcare arena is growing by leaps and bounds — both in medical education and the service delivery system. When it comes to the question of sustainability of service, economic viability is a key issue that needs to be addressed. Demand for quality healthcare is increasing. Patients are aware of their rights and costs are spiralling. The CII has organised the seminar in this backdrop.

Kick-starting the session, “Creating a Value Proposition – Achieving Excellence Through Quality Management and Effective Marketing”, Dr Srinidhi Chidambaram, Consultant – Health Communications, Apollo Hospitals, said hospital marketing was a specialised field that dealt with connecting patients, physicians and hospitals in a mutual relationship. Today, thanks to increased cost, high competition and obsolescence of technology, hospitals need to effectively fill their beds in a shorter period of time. “Therefore, marketing in all its facets, ranging from business development, brand building through direct advertisements to the local community, plays a significant role,” Dr Chidambaram said.

Talking on whether hospitals should go in for accreditation such as NABH and JCI, Dr N. Sathyabhama, Director of Medical Services, Apollo Hospitals, said accreditation ensured a visible commitment by an organisation to improve safety and quality of patient care. It (accreditation) is important because healthcare industry, which was at one time based on trust and partnership between patient and doctor, has turned into one with tension between those who provide care, those who receive it and those who pay for it, she said.

On the role of media in healthcare, Dr Nalini Krishnan, Director, The Hindu Group of Publications, said: “Health is clearly a matter of great public interest as well as considerable, legitimate individual self-interest.”

Talking on how media, as a major vehicle for transmitting health information, supplements consultations with doctors and other health professionals, she said media fulfilled responsibility to society. Drawing reference from a survey on how accurate medical news is in media, she said in 50 per cent of the articles the “advice” was judged to be inappropriate, and in 28 per cent, the “advice” may have been dangerous and potentially life-threatening. So, there is a great responsibility for the media to educate patients in making the right choices, she pointed out.

At the concluding session, a panel of experts including Mr Venkat Chengavalli, CEO, EMRI; and Dr M.K. Mani, Chief Nephrologist, Apollo Hospitals, spoke on the need for innovative healthcare delivery in the country and participation of corporates and the government. Earlier, in his opening remarks, Mr Manikam Ramaswami, Chairman, CII Tamil Nadu, and CMD, Loyal Textile Mills Ltd, highlighted the CII’s efforts to make “healthcare for all” a reality.