‘Every patient is a VIP at MIOT’

Mallika Mohandas, chairman, Madras Institute of Trauma (MIOT) Hospitals Ltd, Chennai has a multifaceted personality and is an epitome of never say-die-spirit. Her relentless efforts in establishing MIOT as a centre for excellence in healthcare services has borne fruit this year, with MIOT hospitals registering a turnover of 45 crores from six crores in 2000. Besides, the hospital also received the ‘Niryat Shree Award’ from the Federation of Indian Exports Organisations (FIEO) in the 2002-2003 for ‘Excellent Performance in Health Care Export’. In an interview with Sapna Dogra, Mallika Mohandas shares her experiences of bringing the hospital to its present stature.

Please brief me about Niryat Shree Gold Trophy Award which MIOT won?

So far, only 22 institutions in the entire country have received the Niryat Shree Gold Trophy Award. No healthcare institute had so far received the award. MIOT is the only hospital in the country that has received this award. It gives us a great sense of satisfaction, achievement and pride to get this award as it is a prestigious award given by the Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) for outstanding export performance under the Ministry of Health. This Award was presented in Delhi by the Union Minister for Commerce and Industry Kamal Nath.

What strategy did you adopt to bring MIOT at this stature?

Our strategy stems from our mission to give the best treatment at a competitive rate or package. MIOT Hospital, which was started in 1999 has now grown into a 250 bed hospital. Now another 85 bedded state of the art extended care facility, with well appointed rooms, is being constructed by Larsen & Toubro, which should be completed within the next six months. Architecturally, MIOT is one of the best designed hospitals in the world.

What are the highlights of the hospital?

The hospital is built on a 14-acre plot, beautifully landscaped and surrounded by lush greenery, away from the congestion of the city, yet close to the airport. The building has a central atrium, which floods it with natural light. You can see the sky from any corner of the hospital. The rooms are elegantly furnished, calm and spacious. MIOT’s design is just not an aesthetic delight but international design norms and air systems fight to keep the environment zero-bacteria free, to allow them freedom to heal. There is only one philosophy at MIOT – “Every patient is a VIP”.

Being a hospital created by a visionary physician, MIOT has inspired the best practitioners to share its mission. Now each department has talented and dedicated professionals at the helm. People readily take up to MIOT as we practice the European concept of cleanliness and hygiene and the whole environment is serene and calm, and all areas like the ICU, Post OP Ward, operating rooms or theatres and the wards have a near zero bacteria environment. Also, the hospital is pollution and noise free as it is surrounded by lush greenery, non-–claustrophobic, open, and all windows in every single room open out into the garden. Every international patient is received at the airport or station by MIOT coordinators who ensure that they are conveyed comfortably to MIOT, in our fleet of air-conditioned vehicles. An exclusive kitchen for international patients – serves up meals that are tailored to their palate as well as suitable to their dietary requirements. A special menu is created for these patients.

What bottlenecks did you face?

Initially, people did not know about the hospital as it was new, but gradually people are becoming aware of our services and more patients are registering themselves for treatment.

There are few snags like patients from Pakistan have a visa problem. In such casesletters are sent back and forth to the Indian Embassy in Pakistan. Sometimes it is difficult to transport patients who have been involved in accidents and need life support. Maybe an air ambulance would be the solution, but this has to be subsidised by the government. The biggest flaw today is infrastructure; for instance, our airport isbadly maintained which has to be improved. When disabled and sick patients come for treatment, they have to wait in a long queue at the immigration desk. Then we have badly maintained pavements and crowdedcities (slow movement of traffic and congested roads). Unhygienic water, pollution stop medical tourists to visit India. We need easy visa processing for patients coming from abroad, especially from Pakistan and Bangladesh.

Is medical tourism your only focus?

Medical tourism just happened, it was not our focus. When the hospital started functioning in 1999, we received a couple of international patients. However, in 2001 international patients started thronging the hospital and in 2004-2005, the hospitals received about 1,300 overseas patients from countries like Gulf, Seychelles, Singapore etc. Notwithstanding foreign patients’ inflow, our endeavour is to follow the vision of Prof (Dr) PVA Mohandas. He believed that Indians should be able to enjoy the same standards of professional health care that istaken for granted in the west. This hospital’s aim is to give the best of treatment to our people. Begun as an orthopaedic and trauma care unit, the Hospital has grown tobecome a truly multi-specialty centre.

Do you have any foreign collaboration?

We have health collaborations with Diwan of the Royal Court, Oman; Royal Guards of Oman; Ministry of Health, Oman; Ministry of Health, Seychelles; Royal Government of Bhutan; HTH International Provider Relations, USA (for people living, traveling or studying abroad); IMG (International Medical Group), Indianapolis, US; Mira Holdings Ltd. Alliance, New Zealand ; International SOS. We have recently signed a contract with HEALTHTRIPS.COM, Canada.

Which countries do you get maximum number of patients from?

We get maximum patients from Middle East, Seychelles, Tanzania, Sudan, Rwanda, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, Yemen, Egypt, Maldives and Bhutan.

What are India’s strengths that will help the country to become the world preferred healthcare destination?

India is poised to become a global healthcare destination because we have skilled, talented, dedicated and experienced surgeons and physicians. Indians give personalised and excellent care to patients.

Also, the cost of treatment is less than 50 percent of the treatment cost in west. And most importantly, India’s economy is booming hence people are curious to visit India and we should cash in on that.

What support do you think the government should give?

For the hospital sector to grow, the government should give tax holiday period like they give to IT industries and other industries for five to 10 years. This will definitely bring about a stupendous growth in the health sector.

There should be 24-hour visa facility across the country for patients coming to India for treatment, immigration authorities should process the entry visa by having a separate counter and system so that they are immediately allowed to leave the airport and go for treatment. Ambulances should be allowed to go to the tarmac for taking sick, stretcher patients and make the process easier and quicker. Also, surplus power should be made available in states so as to prevent outage.

sapna.dogra@expressindia.com