Hinduja to set up satellite clinic in Mumbai
Soumya V - Mumbai

Spoke and hub model is the new flavour

An increasing number of tertiary care hospitals in India are experimenting with the concept of satellite clinics to meet their horizontal expansion plans. The latest entrant in this growing list is Mumbai-based Hinduja Hospital, which is slated to commission its first satellite clinic in Mumbai in January 2002.

The proposed centre is being readied at an undisclosed location in South Mumbai. The Hinduja Trust has already acquired the premises where the clinic is being developed on an area of around 3500 sq ft and a total of Rs two crore have been earmarked for this particular centre. But as per requirement more money may be pumped into the project, which is to be completed in two phases. So far, the plan is for a solitary clinic, but the hospital is concurrently developing other centers too. It is planning to come up with another two or three centres in the immediate future.

However, unlike Apollo or Max - the pioneers to test the concept in India -, Hinduja is not positioning its satellite centers as primary or secondary care clinics but as a consultation and diagnostic extension, Brig Joe Curian, CEO of Hinduja Hospital told Express Healthcare Management.

The services of doctors in Hinduja will now be available at the satellite clinic. Consultants of Hinduja will divide work between the Hospital and Clinic. There will be around 20-25 doctors practising at the clinic.

The clinic will serve as a strong referral and screening centre and in the process would help to streamline patient turnover at Hinduja, says Anupam Verma, director, administration.

Brig Curian also informed that based on Hinduja’s experience, they may set up more clinics within or outside Maharashtra. While the upcoming satellite clinic will have the back up support of all major facilities at the hospital, the ultimate goal for the future is to have telemedicine link.

The recent interest among private players towards satellite centers stems from the hope that such referral centers will aid in regulating patient flow from primary to tertiary care centers.

The concept of satellite clinics is a year old phenomenon started by Max India when it set up Dr Max clinics for primary care and Max Medcentres for secondary care. Max is now on its way to set up a tertiary care hospital. Importantly, Max India chairman Analjit Singh’s recent statement suggests that the break-even time is more for primary care and secondary care as the concept is yet to be introduced to a larger audience and that lack of health insurance is proving out to be a major impediment. This view is echoed by Dr Ashok Bhatkande, director - administration, Breach Candy. He says satellite centers are not attracting enough volumes to justify investments.

Nevertheless, the enthusiasm among private players to invest in primary care and secondary care is a good sign for the healthcare economy in the long run, feel experts.