The 10 best super specialty hospitals

â„¢ www.insightssuccess.in March 2018

10 THE

BEST SUPER SPECIALITY

HOSPITALS

Dr. B Ramesh Director Chief Endoscopic Surgeon

Health insights Digital Health: A New Era for the Human Progress

Tech-N-Trends Hospital Wi-Fi: Making Healthcare Smarter

Altius Hospital

Spreading their Wings to Serve the World

Editorial

T

he use of mobile devices by health care professionals (HCPs) has transformed numerous aspects of clinical practice. Mobile devices have turned out to be commonplace in health care settings, prompting fast development in the advancement of medical software applications (apps) for these platforms.

Mobile devices and applications give many advantages to HCPs, maybe most significantly expanded access to point-of-care tools, which has been appeared to help better clinical decision-making and enhanced patient results. Be that as it may, some HCPs stay hesitant to adopt their utilization. In spite of the advantages they provide, better validation practices and standards regarding medical mobile apps should be built up to ensure the best possible use and integration of these increasingly sophisticated devices into medical practice. These measures will raise the hindrance for passage into the medical app market, increasing the quality and security of the applications presently accessible for use by HCPs.

e-Health, Prompting Fast Development in the Advancement of Medical Software Applications

Also, the new age “Smartphone” has become a connection which connects communication system and endless cutting-edge technology driven applications in a pocket-carried device. The extreme consequence tool has been used to streamline the use of Smartphonebased healthcare technologies and applications, which is likewise commonly named as e-health.

Additionally, the present day healthcare infrastructure is absolutely mobile, which gives numerous choices to patient. These decisions are driven by their health care needs in different clinical locations and settings. These choices are particularly those including Appointments, individual record keeping, Scheduling OPD visits, Specialty clinic referrals, inpatient admissions, choice of particular consultations, Legal shields, privacy issues, Evidence based information, various grapples, Safely maintenance, Tracking of outpatient administrations, crisis counter needs, Operation theaters (OT) accessibility and prudent use, Intensive care units (ICUs) monitoring, reports from laboratories, digital imaging, sharing information and so forth can be streamlined with application of e-mobile health.

Healthcare experts these days require their patients’ health data from point they are relegated to them till the final visit in electronic format and furthermore like to keep it secure for future references in form of paperless clinical practice. The strict working conditions in the healthcare industry and services requires broad mobility of professional superadded with requirement for apt communication and joint effort among different strata’s and levels, people including their associates and patients, which can be accomplished and streamlined with the technological advanced e-health portals and mobile health applications.

Sugandha Sharma

1 THE

BEST SUPER S P E C I A LT Y

HOSPITALS

Flourishing Healthcare Sector of India

I

n the terms of revenue and employment, Healthcare is one of the largest and vast sectors of India, and the Healthcare Industry comprises the Pharma, Biotech, Hospitals, Clinical Trials, Outsourcing, Medical Equipment, Medical Devices, Health Insurance, and Medical Tourism. The Indian healthcare division is expanding at a brisk pace due to its strengthening coverage, services and rising expenditure by public as well private players. India’s competing authority lies in its large pool of well-trained medical specialists. India is also cost effective compared to its peers in rest of the Asia and Western nations. The cost of surgery in India is around one-tenth of that in the US or Western Europe.

Today, the Indian healthcare market is meriting US$ 100 billion and is expected to grow to US$ 280 billion by 2020 and a Compound Annual Growth Rate aka CAGR of 22.9 %. Healthcare services like hospitals, nursing shelters, diagnostics centers and pharmaceuticals constitute 65% of the total healthcare market. There is still a significant opportunity for enhancing healthcare considering that healthcare spending as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is rising. Rural India in total accounts for over 70% of the total country population, is set to emerge as a potential demand source.

India is still in need of 600,000 to 700,000 additional beds over the next five to six years, indicative of an investment opportunity of US$ 25-30 billion.The average investment size by private equity funds in healthcare chains has already increased to US$ 20-30 million from US$ 5-15 million, as per PriceWaterHouseCoopers.

The dire need for proficient healthcare solution providers has made us look out for “The 10 Best Super Specialty Hospitals.” On our cover page we have Dr. B Ramesh, Director and Chief Endoscopic Surgeon of Altius Hospital, having 21 years of excellent medical experience in India. Altius Hospital is one such dedicated leading hospital for Laparoscopic Surgery in Gynaec, and Infertility & Urogynaecology treatments, fulfilling patients’ complete expectations with the International Standards of Healthcare at Indian Cost; which looks impossible, but Altius Hospital has made it possible.

So, flip through the amazing folios for insights on organizations striving hard to keep-up with the technological disruption in the healthcare industry. Find out more about the trends in the industry through articles on ‘Health Insights: Digital Health: A New Era for the Human Progress’ and ‘Tech-N-Trends: Hospital Wi-Fi: Making Healthcare Smarter’ drafted by our in-house editors for this special issue.

Let’s get started then!

Altius Hospital: Spreading their Wings to Serve the World

08 COVER STORY

Upcoming Developments

42

Blockchain: A Cure for Healthcare IT Problems

Expert's Insight

Impact and Importance E-Healthcare: Harnessing the Power of Technology

24

Health Insights

ARTICLES

E-Healthcare: Harnessing the Power of Technology

Digital Health: A New Era for the Human Progress Tech-N-Trends

36 16 22

Hospital Wi-Fi: Making Healthcare Smarter Future Of Pharma

Technologies that will Impact the PHARMACEUTICAL Companies in the Near Future

30

Kovai Medical Center and Hospital:

A Healthcare Provider of Western Approach with an Indian Touch

28

CONTENTS

18 Metas Adventist Hospital, Surat: : Multi-Specialty hospital with State-of-the-Art Facilities

Parvathy Hospital: Providing the Best-in-Class Ortho and Trauma Care

40

34 Rainbow Children's Hospital: India's Largest Tertiary Pediatric & Prenatal Healthcare Organization

Editor-in-Chief Pooja M. Bansal Senior Editor Shraddha Deshpande Managing Editor Sugandha Sharma Co-Editors Sachin Bhandare Art & Design Director Amol Kamble Co-designer Rahul Kavnekar Picture Editor Alex Noel Art Editor Sapana Shinde Visualiser Shweta Shinde Business Development Manager Akansha Garewal Marketing Manager Dhruv Apte Business Development Executives Joan, Tejaswini, Ashwini, Meera Research Analyst David Circulation Manager Vivek Database Management Prashant Technology Consultant Swapnil Patil sales@insightssuccess.com

March, 2018 Corporate Ofď€ ces: Insights Success Media and Technology Pvt. Ltd. th

Off. No. 513 & 510, 5 Flr., Rainbow Plaza, Shivar Chowk, Pimple Saudagar, Pune, Maharashtra 411017 Phone - India: +91 7410079881/ 82/ 83/ 84/ 85 Email: info@insightssuccess.in For Subscription: www.insightssuccess.in

Insights Success Media Tech LLC 555 Metro Place North, Suite 100, Dublin, OH 43017, United States Phone - (614)-602-1754 Email: info@insightssuccess.com For Subscription: www.insightssuccess.com

Cover Price : RS. 150/Follow us on :

www.facebook.com/insightssuccess/

https://twitter.com/insightssuccess

We are also available on : Copyright Š 2018 Insights Success, All rights reserved. The content and images used in this magazine should not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior permission from Insights Success.

Reprint rights remain solely with Insights Success. Printed and Published by Insights Success Media and Technology Pvt. Ltd.

1 THE

BEST SUPER S P E C I A LT Y

HOSPITALS

ALTIUS HOSPITAL : Spreading their Wings to Serve the World

Cover

Story

Dr. B Ramesh

Director & Chief Endoscopic Surgeon

India with a significant presence in clinical and academic circles; being regularly invited as chairperson, speaker, and faculty for major conferences relating to gynecological laparoscopy and infertility. Also, he has completed various degrees in MBBS, MD-Obstetrics & Gynaecology, DGO, FCPS, Diploma in Gynecological Endoscopic Surgery, FICOG, and Ph.D. in Urogynecology, etc.

Dr. B. Ramesh also conducts live surgical workshops and possesses expertise in the treatment of severe endometriosis, laparoscopic vesico vaginal fistula repair, laparoscopic tubal recanalization, and removal of a sub-mucous fibroid, septum resection, TCRE, and hysteroscopic adhesiolysis.

His presentations are frequent, occurring 2-3 times per month across major academic centers all over India.

N

owadays, Healthcare Industry is highly demanding and competitive.

The patients expect 100% perfection from the doctors. Altius Hospital is one such dedicated leading hospital for Laparoscopic Surgery in Gynaec, and Infertility & Urogynaecology treatments, fulfilling patients’ complete expectations with the International Standards of Healthcare at Indian Cost; which looks impossible, but Altius Hospital has made it possible.

About A Visionary Leader with Many Talents Dr. B Ramesh, Director and Chief Endoscopic Surgeon of Altius Hospital, have 21 years of excellent medical experience in India. He is well-known amongst the leading in Gynaec, and Laparoscopic Surgeons in

Dr. Ramesh is the first gynecologist to perform 3D laparoscopic surgeries in India. He has specialized in various laparoscopic sling procedures for nulliparous prolapse, Hysteroscopic surgeries for the uterine septum, Tubal Annulations, Adhesiolysis and all methods of endometrial ablation including TCRE and LASER ablation, as an alternative to hysterectomy. Dr. B. Ramesh also deals with cases of urinary stress incontinence, and laparoscopic pelvic floor repair referred by Gynecologists and other colleagues.

Dr. B. Ramesh has performed over 50000 major Gynaec Laparoscopic Surgeries, a major feat in India and more than 5000 Laparoscopic Hysterectomies. His special interest is in Infertility treatment and IVF and has been successfully running two IVF centers in India.

Surgeons, 5 Anesthetists, 2 Pediatricians, 1 Cardiologists working round the clock with us to give good care to the patients,” assures Dr. B. Ramesh.

Altius Hospital is providing the complete suite of Women’s Altius Hospital has postoperative surgical ICU where in the Healthcare platform in the form of Laparoscopy, patients are cared for after the surgery and monitored until Hysteroscopy, Colposcopy, Ultrasound, Colour Doppler, they are shifted to the ward. Their infertility treatment is Laparoscopy Advanced Cancer Surgeries, 3D surgeries, provided with the use of latest technologies like Blastocyst Infertility Treatment including IVF & ICSI Blastocyst and Culture, Laser Assisted Hatching & Pre Genetic Screening Laser Assisting and Pre Genetic screening before the tests to get the pregnancy rate with International Standards.

Embryo Transfer, Pregnancy care, and Urogynaecology The cost of the whole treatment is only 15% to that of the section. Regularly they perform more than 150 major foreign countries. Also, they offer huge concession to poor Laparoscopic Surgeries per month. In addition to this, they patients and conduct free camps once a year and perform have carried Infertility & IVF treatment of large no’s of almost 50 major surgeries free of cost. Altius Hospital runs patients successfully. The hospital treats a large number of charitable clinic in the villages which is totally free for the Urogynaecology patients with pelvic floor repair and TOT poor patients.

Tape for stress urinary incontinence.

“We receive patients from all the societies, Altius Hospital is the first but we give uniform service to all of Hospital in South India them without differentiating. Also, with a Sophisticated we have multi linguistic doctors Operation Theatre with us who can communicate called OR1. The with the patients in their native hospital has language. The treatment here Urodynamics, Pelvic is very transparent. We give floor surgeries, TOT recorded CD of the surgery and Tape for Urinary complete documents to the Incontinence, which are patients so that when they go to all the advanced other doctors, the whole data is technologies needing lots of available for further treatment,” investments, but they are asserted Dr. B. Ramesh. providing services at an affordable prices to all the Setting new benchmark in Medical sections of the society with good Expertise results at par with the International Standards.

For doctors, Altius Hospital train Gynecologists for Advanced Laparoscopic surgeries from all A Complete Healer for Patients - ‘Keeping around the world. So far they have trained and mentored Pace with the World’s Best’ more than 5,000/- Gynaecologist for last 20 years. The hospital proctored in opening many Hitech Laparoscopy For Altius Hospital, their patients’ are the priority. The Center all over India. patients’ who come to Altius Hospital, they come anytime, without an appointment and consult with the doctor as early “Encouraging and constantly updating the Gynaecologists as possible. The patient can get the to become Laparoscopic surgeons and excel in this field. ultra-modern sophisticated surgeries with 3D Laparoscopy Ours is the first University Recognized 18 months in short span of time at an affordable cost, and they can go Laparoscopy course in India. In addition to that, we have back home within 2-3 days of their arrival to the Hospital. six months Fellowship and one-month Hands-on Training Programme. We have various courses for these, already “We have excellent paramedical staff and HR system that doing surgeries to advance further,” says Dr. B. Ramesh. take cares of the patient needs like accommodation and look after their relatives, food & communication with their Every alternate year, Altius Hospital conducts International families. All these things are done in an uncomplicated way. Workshop & Conference exclusively on Laparoscopy & We have all the time 8-10 Gynecologists, 2 Physicians, 2 Gynaecology. This is called RAGE, and is one of the most Altius Hospital: ‘The Complete Suite for Women’s Healthcare Platform’

“

“

popular conferences in India among Gynaecologists. It’s every event attended by 600 –700 Delegates from all over India, where live surgeries are performed, at least 30-40 surgeries are performed during a two day workshop which is transmitted to the Auditorium. They were the first to conduct 3D live transmission of 3D Laparoscopy Surgeries to 800 delegates in the Auditorium in the year 2012.

Turning Hurdles into Opportunities Initially, they found that doing surgeries all over South India with a mobile Laparoscopy unit was a high challenge.

They used to travel long distance with their team and did Marathon surgeries and travelled back. They continued like this for almost 10-15 years. And that was stressful and challenging but, it gave them an opportunity to work with so many doctors and Hospital set-ups. This gave tremendous experience because the patients and the diseases and surgeries vary from region to region and performing these kinds of High tech surgeries with limited resources with affordable cost was a big challenge to them, and that gave them a lot of confidence and trust in patients and doctors. The lessons that they learned from that experience was that the patients not only need good surgery they need good counseling preoperative and postoperative care and good communication for the treatment to be effective, and also it gave a chance to work with different specialists in different areas.

Forthcoming Endeavors “In our present set up we are facing certain limitations like multispecialty approach and the lack of cardiac ICU and certain investigative tools like MRI, in the next project which is going to be 100 -bedded hospital. We are going to incorporate all these facilities so that the patients get complete care under one roof. Also, we need little more space and Lab for training purpose which will be done in the new facility. Moreover, the new project is going to be useful for us in conducting mega conference and seminars,” affirms Dr. B. Ramesh.

Dr. B. Ramesh’s Advice to new Entrants in this Field He says, “In the medical field, nobody teaches Hospital Administration, Finance & Planning which are very necessary in running the Hospital that’s why doctors do not have this knowledge. In MBBS and MD a separate subject on Hospital Administration, Finance and HR should be introduced and medical students side by side should learn these essential aspects so that when they become consultants, they know how their entire system works and contribute to the success of the Hospital. Then we can do wonders and give an excellent Healthcare at an affordable cost.”

SUBSCRIBE

READ IT FIRST

TODAY Never Miss an

Issue

Yes I would like to subscribe to Insights Success Magazine.

Global Subscription 1 Year.......... (12 Issues) .... Rs. 2500

6 Months ..... (06 Issues) .... Rs. 1300

3 Months .... (03 Issues) ....

1 Month ...... (01 Issue) .....

Rs. 700

Rs. 250

Date :

Name : Address :

Telephone : Email :

City :

State :

Zip :

Country :

Cheque should be drawn in favour of : INSIGHTS SUCCESS MEDIA AND TECH PVT. LTD.

CORPORATE OFFICE Insights Success Media and Technology Pvt. Ltd. Off No. 513 & 510, 5th Flr, Rainbow Plaza, Shivar Chowk, Pimple Saudagar, Pune, Maharashtra 411017.

Phone - India: 020-69400110 | USA: 302-319-9947 Email: info@insightssuccess.in

Company Name

Management

Brief

Altius Hospital Pvt. Ltd. www.altiushospital.com

Dr. B Ramesh Director & Chief Endoscopic Surgeon

Altius Hospital is one of the India’s best leading hospital with Gynaec Laparoscopic surgery, Infertility & Urogynaecology treatments; a 50 Bedded Hospital with High Tech State of the art specialty center.

Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences www.amritahospital.org

Dr. Prem Nair Medical Director

Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences (Amrita Hospital), based in Kochi, Kerala, is recognised as one of the premier hospitals in South Asia. Our commitment to affordable quality care has attracted a dedicated team of highly qualified medical professionals and other healthcare professionals from across the world to provide the highest standards of medical treatment.

Basavatarakam Indo-American Cancer Institute & Research Centre www.induscancer.com

R. Dalip Singh General Manager

BIACH&RI was started with the objective of providing world class cancer treatment at affordable cost to patients and has grown many fold in size with over 500 beds now

Bombay Hospital www.bombayhospital.com

Manish Ved Director

Situated in South Mumbai is the Bombay Hospital and Medical Research Centre, the medical hub of India's biggest metropolis.

Cygnus Super Speciality Hospital www.cygnushospitals.com

Dinesh Batra Director & Founder

The passion to bring accessible, finest quality healthcare, at minimum costs, led to the laying of the foundation of Cygnus hospitals.

Kovai Medical Dr. Nalla G Palaniswami Center and Hospital Chairman www.kmchhospitals.com

Medical Educational Trust Association of Seventh-day Adventists www.metasofsda.in

Dr. Srikakolli Eliah President & CEO Dr. Anil Kumar Ch Vice President Hospital Administration

Parvathy Hospital Dr. Muthu Kumar Pvt. Ltd. Founder & Chairman www.parvathyhospital.com

KMCH is the most trusted Multispecialty Hospital in the Southern Indian City of Coimbatore. The relentless service of KMCH in the past 27 years, taken health care to the most modern levels in the region catering to an urban and rural population.

Metas Group of Institution multi-specialty hospital equipped with state-of-the-art facilities.

Parvathy Hospital used navigation for every knee to achieve a high precision and ensure the longevity of procedure; open up new horizons in healthcare technology and make it available to everyone while delivering standardized healthcare at all times.

Rainbow Children’s Hospital www.rainbowhospitals.in

Ramesh Kancharla Founder

Rainbow Children’s Hospital’s aims to provide high standards of care for mother, fetus, new-born children so that none of them are deprived of tertiary care facility.

Vadodara Institute of Neurological Sciences www.vinshospital.com

Dr.Monish.Malhotra Director

Vadodara Institute of Neurological Sciences – a one-stop center for medical and surgical treatment of diseases of the brain, spine and the spinal cord.

Digital Health: A New Era for the Human Progress 16

D

igital health is undoubtedly becoming a part of the healthcare lexicon and fabric.

Electronic health records and personal ďŹ tness trackers have helped raise awareness in the area of healthcare.

The entrepreneurial enthusiasm in the healthcare sector is evident from the volume of digital health incubators, the large number of private investors, and the medical school innovations. The costs for EHR and other technology acquisition and their maintenance are too costly for smaller hospitals.

Today, young physicians prefer to be associated with large enterprises.

Healthcare has brought two great sectors of industry together: medicine and technology; building new opportunities and themes in areas like digital therapies, health technology, and health insurance innovation. The digital technology coupled up with the worldwide web, it has opened up the

| March 2018 |

Health Insights gates of knowledge to laymen as well as medical professionals in a revolutionary manner. Apothecaries have ceased to be the sole guardians of the medical knowledge collected during centuries. Technology has the power to improve access to healthcare services, especially for the mobile millennial.

thousands of patients and practitioners.

Equipped with the right software, these smart phones provide easy to use, outof-the-box solutions to major medical challenges – preventing the overprescription of medication, promoting patient self-care, warning of the early signs of health problems and introducing positive lifestyle changes.

Techniques Evolving From Ancient to Modern Age

What Does The Future Hold?

The ancient healing modalities help us to breath more deeply, to relax, to find peace and calmness and to allow our bodies to naturally heal. In our hectic lives, we are finding that people are suffering with anxiety, depression and other symptoms impacting their ability to live life happily. Mobile technology can empower patients and various care service providers by giving them more control over their health and making them less dependent on Health Care Professionals for health information.

In 2016, 36 devices and medical applications received clearance from the US Food and Drug Administration.

These include applications to assist people with heart conditions, to help diagnose and treat Attention- Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in children, applications to help patients manage type-2 diabetes, and smartphone-based ultrasound scanners and mobile blood glucose monitors.

A new digital pill by a pharmaceutical company has been used by doctors to track opioid receptors. The pills are equipped with sensors powered by stomach acid and a wearable patch communicates with a smartphone app that is also linked to the cloud.

Digital healthcare must be designed to exploit recent advances in computing technology. Smartphones have become advanced tools in the hands of

| March 2018 |

The aim is to keep the patients well rather than deliver a knee-jerk reaction when they become ill. Supporting and coaching the patients in relation to their sleeping, eating, smoking, drinking and exercise as well as all aspects of managing their condition properly, such as adherence to medication. People can have devices that will constantly measure and monitor their heart rate, blood pressure, breathing, weight or activity levels. Patients will still need specialists with expertise, but the patient and specialist don't need to be in the same space at the same time. A network of connected care means several experts can look at the case simultaneously. This would enable the early diagnosis of health issues by constantly monitoring before they become more serious.

Self-Monitoring This is a realistic option for the majority of the population, including those who are not on the internet.

Patients are no longer bound to the next available appointment, or operating hours which means that they are free to go about their daily lives, take holidays and work without disruption of routine appointments.

People can self-test at a time and in a place which suits them. Associated costs with regular routine appointments are reduced such as travel expenses, parking and time taken from work.

Additional to the financial benefits, self-monitoring also reduces workload on healthcare professionals. Services can reach more patients at scale, without compromising the quality of care.

There are smartphone applications that uses machine learning to identify vocal patterns that might signal posttraumatic stress disorder, or even heart disease. Such developments can provide hospital clinicians with new tools to make better diagnoses.

Privacy With digital health information, there is always a great concern for privacy, especially in this volatile digital age, where identity thieves and other information crooks are constantly developing new ways to compromise the computer systems you already use.

There’s no holding them off by ignoring the issue. The answer is beefed up security.

Conclusion An efficient healthcare system of the future should empower medical practitioners and patients. It should be able to detect early warning signs that may indicate illness or behavior that is likely to lead to poor health – for example, reduced physical activity, missed appointments or medication, and social isolation at home. Digital health tools are by no means meant to replace clinicians but the potential scale, convenience, support of selfmanagement; potential effects on cost savings and better reporting of patient’s outcomes are all very significant. Systems could be designed to contact and alert clinicians without further human intervention.

17

Kovai Medical Center and Hospital: Dr. Nalla G Palaniswami Chairman

H

ealthcare delivery system is a fastgrowing, dynamic and volatile field, where one has to constantly upgrade the technical infrastructure and efficient operational techniques to be successful in the industry. Upgrading technology requires heavy investment, whose return on investment is not encouraging. As the patients are better informed, their expectations are high and hence the demand.

The margins are very thin and sustainability is assured, only if the volume is obtained.

Due to this, many of the small healthcare players are facing challenges in continuing business.

A healthcare provider of western approach with an Indian Touch, Kovai Medical Center and Hospital (KMCH), started as 200-bed Multi Specialty hospital and has now grown as tall as a 1000 bed hospital with six peripheral centers, facility over the last 27 years. The hospital Located in Coimbatore with six satellite centers established in the nearby districts. KMCH has 1300 beds and is in the process of constructing additional 750 beds in the main center campus to cater to the growing demand of this region.

The Hospital’s basic mantras “Patient First” and “Quality service to everyone” has made them easy to get NABH accreditation.

18

| March 2018 |

“

KMCH follow and concentrate on ethical and evidence-based practices.

Their technical expertise and latest infrastructure upgradation have enabled the team to perform many rare and difficult procedures and save many lives. The path KMCH traveled to reach its current heights was not easy, but KMCH was able to overcome all the challenges with the unmoving support of their committed team who has dedicated their life for the development of the hospital.

The thought process for KMCH was initiated in the early 1980s and attained final structure in 1990. There were series of long hour and overnight talks and meetings with likeminded fellows and investors across the globe to materialize the concept. Dr. Palaniswami had sacrificed his luxurious life at the USA and moved to India for making his dream true.

The Leading Light Dr. Nalla G Palaniswami, Chairman hails from an agricultural family and is the first graduate in his village. After completing his post-graduation studies in India, he went overseas for specialization. The best practices in Medicine have evolved to a great extent over the period since his education in the 1960s. The clinical expertise which he gained during his stay in the United States of America and Indian healthcare environment prevailed then deeply kindled his desire to establish a similar system of quality and affordable care for the people of India.

“Our quality service, patient friendly approach, latest technology but at affordable cost, transparency in billing, ethical practices, and clean and Green environment are the major attributes to our success,” says Dr. Palaniswami. Above all these aspects, a dedicated and sacrificing team of doctors, paramedics, administrators, health workers steered by an able leadership had made this journey successful.

Exceptional Approaches to Healthcare KMCH strongly believes in technological investments and are the

We believe in bringing the most modern techniques and delivering extraordinary care to an ailing population with the highest levels of ethics and standards

healthcare leaders in this region. With such investments, they are the first in many complicated and advanced procedures in this region. In spite of advanced technologies, KMCH is at par with the market in terms of charges to the patients. Their awareness programs for the public are very useful for various preventive measures.

Various research programs by the KMCH team are very educative and useful for the society. With one main center at Coimbatore, they have six peripheral centers in around the region so that they can serve everywhere.

KMCH is currently in the process of entering into medical educative program thereby they will be a major medical player in southern India.

KMCH provides their clients unique services and solutions. First and foremost is the availability of all specialties under one roof. Second most important is the very clean and Green environment. The friendly and patient centric approach makes the patients feel comfortable at home. The transparency and ethical approach makes to realize that KMCH are in the right place for treatment. KMCH’s investment in technology and clinical expertize makes the patients blindly

| March 2018 |

19

approach them for their treatment. Economically disadvantageous patients can also receive treatments through a charitable trust. Various other facilities like bank, ATMs, a variety of food courts, Spa, Preventive health checks, shopping plazas makes the patients feel at home. With various CSR activities, the patients and society are benefitted.

Awards and Recognitions KMCH has received many awards and accolades for their outstanding services. It has been awarded “Best Private Hospital – 2016” by The Government of Tamil Nadu and The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry in the month of February 2016. Moreover, it has been awarded “Green Hospital – 2016” by Association of Healthcare Providers (India) (AHPI) in the month of February 2016 and the Healthcare Excellence in Nursing for the year 2014-15 by the Association of Healthcare Providers (India) (AHPI) in February 2015. Kovai Medical Center and Hospital has also won India Healthcare Awards 2014 jointly instituted by CNBC TV18 & ICICI Lombard in the category Best MultiSpecialty hospital – Non metro.

In Feb 2017, the hospital has been recognized as “quality beyond accreditation” by AHPI for its quality and awarded as the “Best Asian Healthcare Brand - 2017” by Economic Times. In Feb 2018, the hospital has been awarded as the “Best patient friendly hospital” by AHPI. Future KMCH has state of the art infrastructure, latest technological equipment and best of the talent pool that can do anything the world can do, successfully. They have already established themselves and earned reputation and confidence among the population. KMCH aims to achieve much more and make their hospital the ultimate healthcare destination.

20

| March 2018 |

HOSPITAL Making Healthcare Smarter

w W

i-Fi is the foundation for digital transformation in the healthcare industry. The Wi-Fi based healthcare service sector is predicted to reach a whopping $33.6 billion by 2020 globally. Healthcare industry has changed significantly in accordance with the technological advancements, including its relationship with Wi-Fi. The demand for Wi-Fi technology is rapidly increasing as doctors, nurses and other medical professionals increasingly use Wi-Fi-enabled devices, ranging from smartphones to patient monitors, in their daily responsibilities. Wi-Fi access helps medical professionals to access real-time information and patient records.

Following are some of the ways in which Wi-Fi is transforming healthcare: Efficient Workflow Nearly all healthcare professionals are required to be highly mobile. In a wireless environment, staff is no longer restricted by the wired workstations and can freely move from place to place and task to task without interruptions. This enables them to monitor patient vital signs through the use of mobile devices that are connected to the hospital network.

Incorporating such practices simplifies the internal exchange of data and the recording of health-related patient data.

Data Transmission Wi-Fi enables transfer of data from and to anywhere in the hospital and that too at a lightning fast speed. Doctors benefit immensely from this as they can access patient information faster and can relay an appropriate cure immediately. Wi-Fi can also be used to deliver highly targeted and patient-specific information such as vaccination reminders, repeat prescription information, follow-up appointment dates and special offers to the patients.

Furthermore, Electronic Health Records (EHRs) digitally stores all health-related data and can be shared by the doctors across diverse locations like patient rooms, treatments room

22

| March 2018 |

and even in the operating theatre. The same is true for mobilization of diagnostic equipment. The static devices can be integrated into the hospital network via Wi-Fi to make them mobile and thus reduce the need to purchase multiple devices.

Feedback on Services In healthcare sector, where everything is driven by targets and patient satisfaction, it is important to receive meaningful feedback. Useful feedback ensures that all the medical center staff is aware of patient views and can continue to deliver the best service possible. A healthcare center might get feedback information on how easy it was to book an appointment, what patients think of the care they received, and whether they needed a repeat appointment. Healthcare centers can ask for feedback on services via their Wi-Fi service whilst the patient is waiting for their appointment.

Remote Consultations Appointments between doctors and patients with non-emergency conditions can be carried out using video conferencing software. Wi-Fi allows medical professionals in possession of a mobile device to meet their appointment schedule even when they are not physically present on-site. The benefits of this are wide ranging, from saving valuable practice budget to boosting patient satisfaction.

Medical Advances Wi-Fi is not just useful for the patients. It is also being used for monitoring oxygen devices, smart beds, access to electronic medical records, and real-time access to X-rays and MRI scans. Such connectivity provides the users with anytime-anywhere access and allows clinicians to provide accurate and timely patient monitoring and focus on the best quality of patient care rather than just administrative tasks.

Guest Wi-Fi Enabling guest Wi-Fi for patients and visitors will mean that outpatient wait times can be put to good use, and inpatients can stay connected to friends and family more easily. Healthcare organizations can also update caretakers with the latest information directly to their connected mobile devices, as well as enable services such as self-check in, all of which can help to streamline workflows while improving patient experience.

Smart Resource Allocation Healthcare professionals, while trying to make the patient experience as smooth as possible remains conscious of the expenses involved in allocating resources. It is of course important to bear the expenses in mind and ensure that services are implemented and used in an effective manner. In this regard, Wi-Fi technology can be used to track wheelchairs, allowing staff to locate them easily and reducing instances of equipment going missing. Presence analytics can also identify which rooms are being used the most, so the hospital can adjust accordingly.

The possibilities are endless and the future for healthcare providers is a plethora of opportunity for enhanced communication from the provision of Wi-Fi.

| March 2018 |

23

Impact and Importance

Digital Revolution Transforming Healthcare Industry

About the Author

Milind Pol

Sr. Vice President Ohum Healthcare Solutions Pvt. Ltd.

24

Milind Pol is the Sr. Vice President of Ohum Healthcare Solutions Pvt. Ltd., a clinical transformation company o ering world class products and processes to improve patient safety, clinical outcomes, and lower costs. As a BTech from IIT Bombay, Milind is an e ective analyst, problem solver and communicator. | March 2018 |

shows potential relation between structure of genes, and physical & emotional health of an individual. Patients have started hile the world is talking worrying about why and how they about technology have been victims of a particular health enhancements and AI and issue. Especially with respect to mission to Mars, healthcare sector is lifestyle diseases, they demand cause evolving rapidly to redefine itself. Very and effect to be mapped in a scientific soon the changes will dwarf the other manner at least going back to their sectors in terms of impact and genome sequence. importance to human history. This article talks about digital revolution Major trend setting forces here are Big that will transform the healthcare Data and AI. With end-to-end EMR landscape globally. and genomic data of millions of patients available like never before, Prescriptive and reactive care to technology can start clustering and Predictive and proactive care categorizing populations based on Traditionally, medicine in healthcare genomic sequences, habits like has been mostly treatment based for an smoking, family history, and much ailment. External factors like bacteria more. This then can be linked to early or virus impact health of an individual warning signs and symptoms, reactions and medicine is expected to help to specific treatment protocols, health human body fight these external outcomes and most importantly, risk of enemies. Medicine of today starts getting into a specific health condition when a patient, who is unwell, like Cancer or Diabetes. approaches a clinical expert to help fight against his health problems.

Predictive sciences take it one step forward with deep learning algorithms This is very counterintuitive in cases of that not only predict “what” but also cancer, diabetes, hypertension etc., predict “when”. Today, these which do not have any known external innovative technologies are being influencers. Research on genomics deployed on a pilot basis and very soon

W

| March 2018 |

we will see these getting into the mainstream.

As per a research study, age adjusted admission rates for all-cause hospitalisation were 631.3 and 454.8 per 1,000 participant years and the mean length of stay was 8.2 and 7.1 days respectively for participants with and without diabetes. When we are able to have effective predictive and preventive methods, can we focus on these high risk patients?

The paradigm changes here from treating a patient (when he presents himself with a complaint) to helping a global citizen live a healthy life by not being a patient. In tomorrow’s world, no global citizen is going to experience the typical symptoms. Even before those symptoms come to the surface, the risk will be mitigated. This is just like destroying a plot of terrorist attack!

Episodic Cost management to Reduce number of incidents to manage costs The biggest challenge for any public or private healthcare organisation is reducing costs of healthcare and making it more and more affordable.

25

While the machinery is working on reducing cost of generic medications, we really want adequate money to be spent and intelligent minds to be working on best of innovations in health and be able to compensate them for their best of efforts. Now this gets you into catch 22 with debate on how much profit you really want them to be able to make.

Needed to Treat) to a perfect score of 1. This will eliminate discussion on side effects of the treatment.

Registries for reporting to making use of registries for effective management of conditions I strongly believe that the above In the past, a lot of data was being argument is coming to an end. The way captured by various government and Moors law worked on hardware, in other organizations to understand healthcare the targeted therapies and criticality and severity of a particular predictive and proactive approaches disease. While it helped us to target are going to reduce the number of treatments like Polio in the past, incidents by more than 80%. This huge technology has now already started reduction will make way for money to moving to the next logical step. be spent in the most critical areas of healthcare.

You don’t need connected hospital systems anymore to be able to identify In the US, CMS has already started outbreaks. Google has proven it in the working on outreach programs to last few outbreaks already, by reduce hospitalization of comorbid providing just the search terms in patients. Programs like these are search engine to predict with high getting acceptance in developed accuracy for effective management of countries through effective control on those outbreaks. payer side. Today, a lot of health insurance providers are giving special Can we take disease registries to the discounts on gym membership and next level to add not only clinically other preventive health measures. relevant data but also twitter tweets, facebook updates and whatsapp private While the number of incidents is chats, etc.? Can we profile registries by getting reduced, Big Data is going to genomic markers? play a huge role to take NNT (Number

26

Can we make all the registries open to researchers to be able to do meaningful research? Can the exceptional cases with positive outcomes across the globe be analyzed to get effective treatment protocols which are evidence based, not in a clinical trial, but in real life cases.

Large Health facilities to Home based tele-health Health systems evolved with necessity of creating best infrastructure to get best diagnostic services, and then best of healthcare. Currently, the large facilities can afford best of technology with accurate monitoring capabilities and speedy treatment.

Very soon the wearable technology is going to be ubiquitous and highly accurate with support from required deep learning algorithm. This, linked with efficient response system from health worker on tele-health platform, will take away need for patients to present themselves in hospitals. Robots are already making their way in telehealth.

This single change is not only going to improve efficiency of the whole healthcare delivery system but will also be highly beneficial to the patient community.

| March 2018 |

Metas Adventist Hospital, Surat : Dr. Srikakolli Eliah President & CEO

W

ith diseases on the increase and rapid technological advances, the healthcare industry is growing at a rapid pace. A multi-trillion industry, it has transformed itself into a commercial venture, as a place where profits can be made. It’s a dark fact that we cannot escape it from being a caring and compassionate industry focused on curing humanity of its ills while becoming a big business focused on what will make money. ‘Service to Humanity’ is our prime motto - the satisfaction of serving is the reward we receive. Focusing on community development and upliftment, the hospital offers free medical treatment, performs free eye surgeries (Cataract Removal) and lowcost surgeries (General, Urology, Neuro, Spine and Joint Replacement – Shoulder, Hip & Knee) to certain sections of the society. In the past 4 years, the hospital has extended charitable treatment to the tune of Rs. 9 Crores ($ 1.39 Million) to the economically poor patients for whom, otherwise, healthcare would have been unaffordable and out of reach.

The Metas Adventist Hospital, on the verge of completing a century of existence, has been founded by Pr. O.W. Lange, an American missionary way back in the 1920s.

It is a part of the worldwide Seventh-day Adventist Organization which has its presence in 215 countries around the world.

Today, it is a multi-specialty hospital

28

| March 2018 |

equipped with state-of-the-art facilities.

With upwards of 250 specialist and super-specialist doctors who provide specialty medical services in virtually every known realm of medical treatment, that includes Cardiology, Neurology, Nephrology, Urology, and Orthopedics. The hospital’s specialties are backed by experienced and welltrained paramedical staff. The Operation Theatre complexes are fitted with the Laminar flow, C-arm, latest OT lighting and monitoring systems.

The ICU, MICU, NICU and 24-hours trauma centers have doctors round-theclock to manage any emergency with facilities that include Ventilators, Modern Monitoring Systems, Syringe Pumps, And Defibrillators. The Emergency and Casualty Center is one of the busiest in the city. The triage time averages less than 10 minutes.

Elegant patient rooms with modern amenities, an in-house 24-hour Pathology laboratory which has cell counters, auto analyzers, and an ABG machine. A fully functional Radiology Department with Digital X-Ray machine, Departmental Sonography, CT-Scan, and a 24-hour Pharmacy.

Intellectual Personality of Metas Group of Institution Dr. Srikakolli Eliah is the President and CEO of Metas group of institutions. A most remarkable person, he has made pioneering contributions to the organization’s healthcare and education ministries. He has brought together all the threads of his life as teacher, Principal, academician, administrator, scholar, and leader and has shaped the careers of countless youth who have gone on to lead sectors, departments, schools, and hospitals. He has taken Metas to new heights. What drives him is his belief that there is no place for mediocrity in life; Success is, not an accident, but a choice. He has an uncompromising work ethic and dedication. An innovative leader and person of farsighted vision, he is human-focused and always believed in the mantra that we must give back to society more than what we receive from it. This is | March 2018 |

“

the prime reason why he chose to enter the world of healthcare.

Challenges and Opportunities Metas Adventist Hospital is highly committed to treating patients with medical excellence, care, and compassion. A patient is made to feel like he is at home. Experienced medical professionals enhance patient care through speedy diagnosis and treatment. Service excellence is achieved through an ideal blend of medical brilliance and personalized care. They provide ambulance service to the patients and a variety of pleasant, comfortable air-conditioned rooms equipped with nurse call systems, television, refrigerators, and phone facility during the treatment.

Cuisine to suit all taste buds is an integral part of our service and the nursing care is of international standards.

Career and skill development are opportunities provided to all the employees and workers. The Hospital also serves as a training hospital for many resident doctors and nurses from the neighboring medical and paramedical colleges. Ranging from basic skills to advanced life-saving procedures (BLS & ACLS training) the hospital provides in-house training and development workshops and forums for all to attend.

A Unique take on Metas Adventist Hospital They continually redefine the way they do business. Their prime goal is never to waver from delivering high quality, low cost, and highly reliable care.

Their leadership remains focused and dedicated and demands accountability from all. Metas Adventist Hospital, Surat is open to implementation of the newest technology and there is a regular upgradation to their in-house facilities. Last year they were accredited by NABH for their quality practices and standards. They are

Don't Stand By The Water And Long For Fish. Go Home And Weave A Net

aiming to upgrade ourselves to become the first hospital in the city that is accredited by the JCI Board and international accrediting body for quality services and standards. They are adaptable to change and prepared to evolve with the changing times and stay abreast of developments and innovation in medical services. For us, the patient is and will remain the center of their care, everything else, including profits, comes second.

Future Plans of Metas Group The best part about the hospital is, they have never wavered from their commitment to providing compassionate, professional healthcare services for the whole person, body, mind, and spirit. They have been ordained to improve the health of the communities they serve. For nearly a century they exist in the industry, because of their dedication, commitment and against all odds have relentlessly pursued their accelerative impetus, driven by a single-minded goal of serving the ailing humanity with Christ-Like healing, making the curing of the sick a priority, providing a non-discriminatory access to healthcare by ministering to individuals and populations most affected by poverty, tragedy, hopelessness, and disease.

29

Technologies that

will Impact the PHARMACEUTICAL

Companies in the

Near Future

F

or years, pharmaceutical industries are trying to keep pace with the rapid speed of technology. Pharmaceutical industries are still unclear about how the new digital technologies are going to impact drug development and commercialization. Several industrial experts feel that emerging technologies such as AI and 3D printing will bring changes to the business models, operations, workforce, and cyber security. Recently, a new plasmonic sensor was developed by researchers to detect early cancer forms.

Though, the healthcare sectors are slow in adapting to the innovation and technologies, they need to be more concerned and ensure that medications are safe to consume. So, here are the trends that are making an impact on the pharmaceutical industry in the near future.

3D Printed Drugs 3D printing starts with a computer-aided design of a digital model of the product. Think of a future, where taking a single tablet to cure the problem instead of taking numerous drugs several times a day while the patient is in multiple chronic conditions. By using 3D Printer, drugs can be produced in peculiar shapes, sizes and colors such as starďŹ sh, dinosaurs and many other interesting shapes in order to make the kids take pills happily and elder patients can easily swallow it. There is an issue in bringing pharmaceutical products to the market, due to strict regulatory requirement which are needed to adapt to the environment and accept printing as a method of manufacture. The ultimate goal is to make the drug creation process predictable, calculable, and thus safe from every regulatory point of view.

30

| March 2018 |

Future Of Pharma

Digital Health “Around the Pill” For decades, pharmaceutical industries are trying to offer something beyond traditional pills and drugs to bring effective changes to the patients. Instead of producing drugs and developing pills, a leading research team has proposed to bring a change to the medicine's physical appearance itself. Also, one of the Pharmaceutical Companies from Japan is planning to involve a wearable monitoring device and an App, through which patients can receive positive feedback from their doctors and from the automated personalized feedback generated by the app itself.

Artificial Intelligence and Cognitive Computers With the leading technology of artificial intelligence and cognitive computers, doctors can identify the disease present in the patients within seconds, instead of going through lots of experiment and tests for hours or days. Artificial intelligence can help in gathering the information related to the disease from a vast database in seconds. So, once the disease is identified, the drugs are supplied to treat the patient in a shorter period of time. Due to artificial intelligence involvement, time consumption and lots of money is saved from experiments and also, the price of the medicine reduces in the marketplace.

Virtual Reality (VR) Nowadays, even the pharmacy industries are planning to invest on virtual reality to work against pain killers. Due to virtual reality, the patients suffering from stress, tension and pain are deflected elsewhere. As a patient with mental health problems, VR can help them fight possible fear of schizophrenia more successfully. Perhaps the pharma companies believe the future will be VR pharmacies with specialists prescribing the appropriate VR treatment to patients.

Nanotechnology For over years, nanotechnology is developing to bring an impact to healthcare and in the field of genetic engineering. A lot of professionals from Pharma Industry hope that Nanotechnology is going to unleash breakthroughs in genetic engineering, medicine, diagnosis and in various types of dosage forms in pharmacy. German institute researchers came closer to realizing the vision in developing Nano robots in the form of swallowing pills or can be inserted into the blood stream to perform surgery and hopefully cure the diseases like breast cancer and heart surgery from within the body.

The Future of pharmaceutical industries can bring a great change to the environment with technology innovation. Though, adapting to the new technology in the healthcare sectors is a challenging firm. Pharmaceutical industries can’t rely on trial-and-error approaches to deal with existential risk for longer period of time anymore. Today, the necessity is to increase our investment in developing defensive technology. Many changes can be brought to people by pharmaceutical industry unless it generates a passion to compassionate with the developing technologies.

| March 2018 |

31

Parvathy Hospital Dr. Muthu Kumar Founder & Chairman

P

arvathy Hospital was initiated with the objective of providing the best- inclass Ortho and Trauma care. The hospital was inaugurated in the year 2004. In order to provide overall trauma care the hospital had to scale to become a Level 1 trauma centre. (Capable of providing comprehensive care, the highest of five levels) Reaching this benchmark in just a span of 3 years since inception, the hospital installed the whole body CT scan which empowered the arrival of a diagnosis on the victim’s injuries in 60 seconds and equipped other specialties like Plastic Neuro, Vascular, Ortho, Oral and Maxillo Facial with a 24/7 availability of consultants and surgeons along with well-equipped operation theatres.

Treading steadily from there, the hospital moved towards standardization to provide quality healthcare for every patient and so thus introduced many innovative techniques to improve surgical results. As a 100 – bed hospital today with a full NABH accreditation, it offers its patients comfort and care of international standards. Scaling its healthcare standards the hospital was recognized as one of Asia’s best Healthcare Brands in 2017 by the Economic Times.

The medicine world is constantly re-defining itself with newer techniques in surgery and path-breaking researches. When Navigation

34

| March 2018 |

was rarely used or used only for complicated cases, Parvathy Hospital used navigation for every knee to achieve a high precision and ensure the longevity of procedure. As they move towards allograft, they have met its demands by setting up a Bone Bank.

And they would soon move towards the setting up a Cartilage Bank too.

The hospital believes in transforming the lives of its patients, which becomes the prime factor in fostering better client relationships while inspiring and encouraging its doctors to provide better healthcare.

The string of clinical achievements to its credit also include: Ÿ One of the few firsts in the country to bring in the Brain- suite iCT (Intraoperative CT) Ÿ The first in the state to perform the minimal invasive spine surgery Ÿ The first in Asia Pacific to navigate a Total Hip Replacement Surgery Ÿ The first in the state to perform a titanium cranioplasty Parvathy Hospital now is a fully equipped multi- specialty hospital offering the services of Orthopedics which is a Centre for Joint Replacement Surgeries; an Institute for spine surgeries; Arthroscopy and Sports Medicine care; the Foot and Ankle center along with comprehensive care for Upper and Lower limb trauma. The hospital is also completely equipped to serve trauma with Plastic and Reconstructive surgeons, Neurosurgeons, Vascular and Oral & Maxillo Facial surgeons.

The Impetus of Parvathy Hospital Parvathy Hospital was founded by the visionary Dr. Muthu Kumar, with the objective to provide trauma care to accident victims. The hospital is on the GST road, which ranks highest in the number of accidents in the state. With just 10 beds and two operation theatres, Dr. Muthu Kumar and another assistant used to receive trauma patients day and night. Quicker and definitive treatment - the goal, minimizing damage to the quality of | March 2018 |

life - the focus and above all saving lives – the passion! Dr. Muthu Kumar moves steadfast along with his team, with a profound belief of improving the life and mobility of patients who have serious challenges either because of a disease, disorder or trauma.

“

When talking about the advancements in the area of Joint Reconstruction Surgeries, Dr. SMK says, “Today a person with a well –done Hip Joint can play rugby, do acrobatics and gymnastics. These activities are possible because of the anatomical evolution where the joint was recreated with a big cup and head which was fully locked inside allowing the person to even bring the knee to touch the face!

As for the knees, high flexion implants today enables the patient to sit on the floor, follow their religious practices, perform yoga even do the Surya Namaskar. Some of my patients play tennis, are captains in the navy, seamen and civil contractors.

This functionality is possible with the ceramic-on-ceramic implant. Total Knee replacement has evolved allowing us to give a much better anatomy than the previous ones” Challenging Phases of Parvathy Hospital Some of the biggest challenges faced by the hospital during the initial days were the handling of trauma victims and Medico-legal issues. Equipping Trauma Care with Intensivists, Vascular, Neuro, Plastic and Ortho surgeons round the clock was also another big challenge they faced.

Patient Care A patient at Parvathy Hospital is not just happy and satisfied, but experiences delight. Every patient interaction aspect and process is standardized, tested, implemented and constantly improved. This ensures the

All Human Beings are one and Equal.

Human Assets are our pride and the practice of Ethical Medicine is our strong foundation

best reception, in-patient and outpatient experience, treatment and surgical care.

Protocols – The hospital implemented protocols at every specialty with a view to alleviate any re-surgeries and ensure superior treatment outcomes.

Specialization – Every specialty and sub-specialty is attended only with consultants who fulfil a requisite. This practice of privileging doctors according to their expertise, knowledge and skill base was another significant milestone in the quality of clinical care provided.

Way forward at Parvathy Hospital The best part of Parvathy Hospital is the “Employee First” attitude of the management which enables everyone to work as one big team. Every employee of Parvathy Hospital embodies characters of ownership and commitment in the different job roles they perform and work together as one family.

They also keep upgrading technology and this experience is delivered through our highly satisfied employees which ensures patient delight guaranteeing high quality patient experience. And this is their biggest strength they would use build their future.

35

Upcoming Developments

l ckchain: A Cure for Healthcare IT Problems

B

lockchain is one of the most significant technologies since the internet. Government and states, locally and globally, have started to explore the Blockchain technology for rationalizing back-office paper trails and business operations. It has been at the center of media attention largely due to Bitcoin, an upcoming digital currency that uses blockchain technology.

Blockchain technology is particularly helpful to streamline processes, minimize fraud, lower operational costs, eliminate duplication of work and generate new ways to integrate in a sharing-based economy.

Simply put, blockchain is a distributed, absolute ledger or database that stores records known as blocks, which further stores various kinds of information. These blocks, which collectively form a “blockchain,” are stored on various

36

storage devices, which ensure that no single person or entity can manipulate the ledger or database without everyone else knowing.

While blockchain is being considered for many uses, its potential to revolutionize healthcare is apparent. Having an open blockchain for medical data can prove useful as most healthcare data is now segregated amongst different providers, who often use different database systems. These systems often have crucial information which is scattered and inaccessible. Such a scenario can prove to be dangerous in an industry where even a few extra seconds or minutes can make a difference. Blockchain systems built for healthcare can make important healthcare-related data more easily accessible leading to a better and faster treatment.

| March 2018 |

Blockchain can link patients to their data, rather than to their identity. According to a recent survey, the healthcare industry is planning most aggressive deployments of blockchain, with 35 percent of health and life sciences planning to deploy it in the coming years. Furthermore, blockchain verification can help increase the trust and integrity in clinical research publication. The decentralized ledger allows for a simpler, more efficient and cheaper way to share peer-reviewed research and is highly applauded by clinicians.

Let’s look at some of the ways in which blockchain is transforming healthcare: Drug and Organ Traceability Currently, counterfeit drugs cost pharmaceutical companies an estimated $200 billion in losses annually. Employing blockchain will enable every transaction between drugs manufactures, pharmacists, wholesalers, and patients to be tracked to verify and secure drug product information which is important for tackling issues like counterfeit drugs.

It also facilitates new drug development by making patient results more widely accessible.

Blockchain-based systems could help drive unique collaboration between participants and researchers to promote innovation within medical research, predominantly in the fields of precision or personalized medicine.

Patient Data Access Informed patients know that data is critical in increasing their care and safety. This safety is beyond the data hacks.

Blockchain provides ability for the healthcare providers to have access to information that will help them better treat the patient. There has been an inclination towards educating patients to manage their health and embrace wellness and prevention and that may also include the data that is generated out of this practice. Precision medicine in clinical trials presents another big opportunity for blockchain innovations.

Medical Research

Moreover, it also provides a platform for tracking blood and human organs. These products are critical to human health and they often have a tight time expiry. Blockchain helps in safely tracking it each step of the way.

Centralizing the results of clinical trials and patient outcomes for new treatment protocols can improve care and patient outcomes. Scientists can quickly find and enroll patients for their clinical studies and even complete their entire research project using online datasets. Researchers can cumulate research data across all the clinical trials a person has completed to gain unique insight which was not possible with a smaller dataset. Thus, blockchain could provide the access to make medical innovations quicker.

Precision Medicine

Claims and Billing Management

The lack of interoperability among data systems in a personal health network is impairment on patient care.

Employing blockchain could reduce admin costs for billing by eliminating the need for intermediaries with automated

| March 2018 |

37

activities and more eďŹƒcient processing. This could help minimize medical frauds which can cause more than $30 million losses in a year.

Contribution of Wearables Wearables and internet of things devices can also be integrated into the health IT ecosystem through blockchain.

Health wearables are currently storing critical information for clinical research, outcomes of treatments, and disease prevention and management. If validated, this data can be secured, shared and veriďŹ ed on a blockchain and thus the function of health wearable will take on a whole new role.

Electronic Health Records Blockchain can help enhance three major features of the EHR systems: Immutability via File Integrity: Each event on the blockchain has a unique combination corresponding to the contents of a record. This means that the users can verify if the status of the content of the records has been changed or not.

Cybersecurity via Data Access Management: Each combination may contain particular user permissions for doctors, patients, nurses or any authorized users or devices.

Therefore, only authorized personnel may access record information.

38

Interoperability via Collaborative Vision Control: Each party has a record linked to the original record that is registered to the blockchain. Thus, everyone who has the appropriate role and responsibility can add information to the record while avoiding issues such as inconsistent or duplicate records.

Data Security With the growth of connected devices and the Internet of Medical Things (IoMT), existing health IT architecture is struggling to keep systems secure. Blockchain technology has the potential to be the infrastructure that is needed to keep health data private and secure while reaping the beneďŹ ts of connected medical devices.

There are some incredibly exciting ways in which blockchain can enhance healthcare operations, however, more research, trials and experiments must be carried out to ensure a secure and established system is implanted before using blockchain technology on a large scale in healthcare.

Today, the healthcare industry is drowning in data- clinical trials, patient medical records, complex billing, medical research and more. Adoption and implementation of blockchain will be an evolution over time as blockchain applications are vetted and adopted as well as the industry coming together to determine collaboration and governance issues.

| March 2018 |

Rainbow Children's Hospital: Neeraj Lal Cluster Head Vice President

T

here is increasing disparity where the ‘well to do’ and the ‘increasingly affordable middle class’ can get the most advanced care for their sick neonates. The underserved urban poor and those in the rural areas still contribute to the overall high neonatal morbidity and mortality in India. The recent government initiative, the India Newborn Action Plan, is the step in the right direction to bridge this gap.

Globally, newborn health is now considered as a high-level national priority. The current neonatal and infant mortality rate in India is 29 per 1000 live births and 42 per 1000 live births, respectively. The last decade has seen a tremendous growth of neonatal intensive care in India. The proliferation of neonatal intensive care units, as also the infusion of newer technologies with the availability of well-trained medical and nursing workforce, has led to good survival and intact outcomes. There is good care available for neonates, whose parents can afford the high-end healthcare, but unfortunately, there is a deep divide, between the poor rural populations which is still underserved with the lack of even basic newborn

40

| March 2018 |

c

are in a few areas. A strong public-private partnership and prioritization are needed to achieve this goal.

Rainbow Children's Hospital is an Indian chain of Pediatric Hospitals headquartered in Hyderabad, India.

The Hospital further expanded its branches to Karnataka, where it has achieved the milestone of being the number one Children's Hospital. It was incepted with an aim to provide high standards of care for the mother, fetus, new-born, and children so that none of them are deprived of a tertiary care facility. Their clinical staff includes a strong team of highly qualified and experienced consultants, a dynamic team of residents and fellows, welltrained nurses and paramedical personnel, and the highly motivated team of full- and part-time employees.

Comprehensive and Trained Pediatric Gastroenterologist Rainbow Children’s Hospital is founded by Dr. Ramesh Kancharla on 14th November, 1999 on Children's Day; their main focus is pediatric and maternal healthcare services. He has a long stint in the UK working at some of the most prestigious tertiary care hospitals for children in the world.

Neeraj Lal is the Cluster Head and Vice President of Rainbow Children’s Hospitals, Bangalore and Karnataka Region. A post-graduate in Hospital Administration from the renowned Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Mumbai, he holds a degree in Medical Sciences from PGI Chandigarh. He is one among the four Indian individual members of the International Society for Quality in Healthcare (ISQua) based out of Dublin. He is also an approved Surveyor for ISQua’s International Accreditation Programme.

The purpose of the hospital is to reduce the learning curve and establish a network of paediatric specialists, which Rainbow seems to provide the | March 2018 |

“

best. Rainbow Children’s Hospital, was branched in Bengaluru in April 2015. There has been a long felt need for dedicated Pediatric Services in Bengaluru and surrounding regions which was filled with the emergence of Rainbow Children’s Hospital.

Teamwork is the very soul of the entity as Rainbow Hospitals Group.

An Ideal Platform for Committed Experts and Services The state of the Art facilities and infrastructure at Rainbow Children’s Hospital provides an ideal platform for offering advanced comprehensive care for every child in need; from the period of conception to adolescent period. The hospital is increasingly recognized as a one-stop destination for a needy child who may need critical care services, surgical interventions and care from various pediatric specialties under one roof; with the help of a team of committed expert. Rainbow Hospital is Bangalore’s first stand-alone pediatric hospital designed, equipped & staffed exclusively for offering Pediatric Surgery, Pediatric Hemato-oncology, Pediatric Endocrinology, Pediatric Nephrology and Pediatric Neurology under one roof. Apart from the Pediatric Services, Rainbow Hospital also comprises “Birth Right by Rainbow” that offers comprehensive care for pregnant mothers and newborns - pre & post-delivery, fetal medicine and neonatal care. The services include pregnancy counseling, child birth preparation classes, Breast feeding support, post - partum care, etc.

Initiatives Taken towards Care Rainbow hospital Bengaluru has done 3000+ deliveries, 16,600+ admissions, and two lac+ OPD’s. A few initiatives started in Rainbow Children’s Hospital Bangalore are NICU Retrieval

Community health provider with patient –centric care for infants, children and women Services, Outreach Super-specialty Clinics, Pediatric & Adolescent Diabetes Center and Child Development Center which beliefs in helping out little ones achieve the best of their potential through our multidisciplinary team approach that would maximize their development.

There is special emphasis on the use of technology-based tools like the insulin pump, continuous blood glucose monitoring as well as teaching about flexible meal planning approaches like Carbohydrate Counting at the Pediatric & Adolescent Diabetes Center.

Appreciation and Awards Achieved Ÿ Neeraj Lal received the Award of

Excellence for “Outstanding Contribution in Healthcare Sector”

by North Gujarat University, Patan (2011). Ÿ Rainbow Children’s hospital has been awarded “Best Children’s Hospital in the country by CNBC, TV 18, and ICICI Lombard at Health Care Awards in 2010. Ÿ Ranked among the “Five Best Children’s hospitals in India” by ‘The Week’ and ‘HANSA Research’ for the year 2010, 2011 and 2012. Ÿ Rainbow Hospitals also received the “Six Sigma Healthcare Excellence Award” at first Asia Pacific International Conference.

41

E-Healthcare: Harnessing the Power of Technology About Author Satish Kannan is the Co-founder of DocsApp, a mobile platform where people can consult specialist MD Doctors within 30 minutes through chat or call from the location of their convenience. Satish always had an inclination towards healthcare solutions.

He believes that taking the time to plan the assignment is crucial for the company's success. Being in the healthcare industry for many years, he has learned its various functions at various levels which include hospitals and hospital management.

He has also extensively worked on importing new equipment from markets around the globe.

I Satish Kannan Co-founder DocsApp

42

f there’s one thing we can all agree on, it's that technology has made a huge impact, bringing along with it a plethora of opportunities to explore and take advantage of. It is impressive to see how the youth of this country have adapted to technology in their day-to-day lives. Such has been the advent of technology that we've got the older generations trying their hand at it too.

I think one of our biggest advantages is that India is a very young country, ďŹ lled

| March 2018 |

Expert’s Insight with smart minds and enthusiastic individuals who are always striving to make the best of everything given to them. Or “Hustling” as we like to call it. In the past few years, due to the enthusiasm that technology has inspired, we have seen huge behavioral changes in the way we access multiple services. Earlier we used to stand in long queues to pay electricity bills, take time out to walk to the store to shop for necessities, book cabs a day in advance, run to the bank for transactions, and stand in queues to book train tickets. Today, it is a common practice to recharge phones, pay for utilities, order clothes online, make transfers, and all of this using just a smartphone device. 10 years ago if someone would have told, you would a get a cab in 2 minutes by just a few clicks on your phone, it would have been hard to believe. Today, it is an accepted reality; such is the power of technology and this said technology is penetrating into all domains including healthcare. Healthcare is an important domain in which technology is crucial to meet the rising health needs of the country.

but the poor infrastructure and the lack of skilled staff makes it difficult for people to avail these services. A lot more needs to be done and that is where technology can help. Moreover, at the pace at which the country’s population is growing, we would need twice the number of doctors that we have already in order to meet the WHO standard. Startups like DocsApp, are working hard towards making high quality healthcare accessible to the masses.

indicator of the world that we are going to see where patients will primarily access doctor online and meet physically only when absolutely necessary.

For countries like the US and China, healthcare is primarily driven by Insurance companies and the State. On the contrary, in India people have the liberty to choose their preferred medical care because a majority of the population, 85% approximately, pay for their medical consultations right Today, we are a tech savvy generation; out of their own pockets. That being we like to be served quickly, we cannot said, new and innovative ideas will be even wait to think, we just Google it! welcomed as it serves a dual purpose; From going to our mom’s kitchen for a infrastructure costs of offline medical home remedy when we were down care will be brought down drastically with the flu, we’ve evolved to which will make doctors will also be searching for online solutions. able to serve patients beyond any According to statistics, 5% of the geographical limits and consultations Google search keywords are related to will be cost effective. health and medical conditions. There has been a paradigm shift, people are In the future, geographical constraints comfortable with talking to doctors will be a thing of the past. As the online, and it is more convenient for access to high-speed internet is the people to seek virtual help for all increasing, video consultation is health issues and ailments. The becoming seamless and convenient. younger generations in 20-40 age We wouldn’t be surprised if VR brackets are looking online for doctor consultations would become a real consultations, medicine delivery and Anecdotal reports suggest that a thing in the years to come. whopping 700 million people have no getting labs test done at home and the like. access to specialist doctors in India, The changing behavior of the young 80% of the population live in rural populace combined with the strong areas of the country and have minimal The future hospitals as I see will be 70 need for innovative solutions is how % online and 30% offline. People or no access at all to primary we can solve the mammoth healthcare would get their OPD (Outpatient healthcare. The most shocking fact of issues in the country. Online healthcare Department) consultations done easily solutions will be the only and preferred the matter is that 90% of specialist doctors practice in the top cities of the over the mobile and consult the doctor option in the days to come. The internet has democratized multiple country, whereas 90% of the demand is via video chat. At junctures where a from people residing in places outside physical examination is mandatory by industries like travel, music, retail etc. the doctor, they would visit the hospital The impact in healthcare domain is tier 1 and tier 2 cities. There is huge after which they would further follow- truly waiting to unfold in the next 10 mismatch in patient demand and up with the doctor online. Primarily, years. Better IOT devices for vitals supply of doctors. procedures and surgeries would tracking, cloud software, AI helping continue to happen at the offline doctors in diagnosis, are all happening Even though central and state hospitals. What we see at DocsApp as we speak. DocsApp and other governments have initiated various today is that we provide specialist online health solutions are rightly universal healthcare programs, doctor consultation for more than 1500 positioned to transform the future of successful implementation of such patients a day, which is higher than any the Indian healthcare system. schemes is still a distant dream.

Government hospitals offer treatments, other offline hospital. This is an

| March 2018 |

43