‘Less hospital beds ensure reduced infection & cost-effective care’

Tufan Ghosh, CEO, Columbia Asia Hospital

That he has not worked in a hospital setting before, did not deter Tufan Ghosh from donning the mantle of CEO of the recently launched 75-bed Columbia Asia Hospital at Hebbal in Bangalore. Armed with more than 18 years of experience in the hospitality industry, in which he worked with India's leading five star hotels in various prestigious posts, Ghosh is perhaps setting a new trend. Will the soft skills of hospitality executives take over the discipline of army men or business minded attitude of MBAs? Ghosh, the youngest general manager at the Oberoi known for his penchant for overhauling infrastructure and to transition 180-degree shift in employee relationship areas, modestly dodges the question. A science graduate with statistics honors from Kolkata's Presidency College, and a diploma holder in hotel management from The Oberoi School of Hotel Management, New Delhi, Ghosh is respected for his clear understanding of complex business processes and systems including administration, financial, human resources, front end and back end operations. In an interview with Rita Dutta, Ghosh discussed various facets of the Bangalore project and expansion plans of the group.

What were the significant observations of the feasibility study that Columbia Asia conducted before initiating its Bangalore project?

The study revealed that Bangalore offers a cosmopolitan market with a number of people from all over the country, adequate purchasing power and a discerning population aware of international practices. The study also revealed that the city has plenty of local talent in doctors, nurses and para medical staff and pointed to an under- supply of quality community-based healthcare facilities here.

After Malaysia and Vietnam, why did Columbia Asia choose Bangalore? The city already boasts of hospitals of international standards like Manipal and Wockhardt.

Bangalore has the right blend of what we identify as our primary audience - a large middle and upper middle-income group with household income of Rs 20,000 per month and above, young intelligent professionals who demand the best in healthcare for themselves and their families and growing acceptance of being medically insured

We sincerely believe that Bangalore has adequate and more opportunities for all "players" in the healthcare business. A hospital should be strategically located at a place which is close to a populated area or working place or both. In our case, we choose Hebbal as it is an upcoming area, but having no major hospital in the vicinity.

Please elaborate on your Bangalore project. What is its USP?

Bangalore is our "model" hospital, it being a replica of our hospital in Malaysia. Having 75 inpatient beds, the hospital at Hebbal is a multi-specialty hospital covering a wide spectrum of healthcare modalities including obstetrics and gynaecology, general surgery, general medicine, orthopaedic surgery, paediatrics, ophthalmology, radiology, plastic surgery, dental, amongst others. Columbia Asia is the first to enter the healthcare industry in India through the FDI route.

Our USP lies in the quality of our people selected and continuous training delivered, value for money, modern centralised medical gas systems confirming to HTM 2002 standards, operating theatres and hospital designed to conform to international accepted American Society of Heating Refrigeration and Air-conditioning (ASHRA) standards, dedicated labour delivery suites, day care centre and ambulatory procedures. The hospital follows internationally accepted policies and procedures and proprietary software and Electronic Medical Records. Our services are focused and we cater to corporates and TPA's with emphasis on transparent pricing and providing cost savings. All our services are standardised; this is irrespective of the rooms patients choose to stay. We have specially trained our staff in soft skills.

Unlike other hospitals, ours is designed in a way that the registration desk is in the beginning and cash section comes only after the service is received. This implies that one does not have to make any upfront payment before taking any service. There is no chaotic queue at the reception also. Each room being very spacious and each bed being window facing enhances the quality of care and healing.

Having 75 beds does not sound ambitious. Why did you decide on such a small number?

The less numbers reflect the current trend of day care and ambulatory surgery. By reducing the number of average length of stay, chances of nosocomial infection rate are reduced, along with making the treatment more cost-effective.

What made the group decide on a multi-specialty hospital and not a super specialty one?

We are a multi-specialty hospital with a clearly defined set of products and services. Investments required for super specialty hospitals are not commensurate with return on investments and have a long pay back period. This business model has proved successful in Malaysia and Vietnam. We now plan to replicate this success in Bangalore, too.

Please elaborate on your Malaysia model. Have you made any modifications to the Bangalore model to suit the Indian conditions?

The Malaysian hospital located at Seremban-Negeri Sembilan is a 75-bed community hospital, having focus on compact and comprehensive care. The success of the model prompted us to replicate the model for Bangalore, with very minor modifications.

A hand picked team of experts from Malaysia and Vietnam is guiding us to set up the operations in Bangalore. We are open to more modifications in the near future. We are optimistic that the Malaysia model would click in India, as the pattern of disease is the same.

What are your future healthcare projects in India and abroad?

Our future plans are 150-bed tertiary care facility in Yeshwantpura area in Bangalore by 2007 and 75-100 bed facility in south Bangalore by 2006.

Columbia Asia is looking for similar facilities to open in markets in southern and northern parts of India.

Would the Hebbal Hospital act as a hub for the other two hospitals?

No, all the hospitals would function independently. The only difference may be that each would be specialising in one or two specialties(s).

Are cost of facilities at your Bangalore Hospital on par with Columbia Asia's hospital in other countries?

We adopt independent pricingstrategies for individual markets. Our pricing policy remains unchanged- maximise offered value for money for our target audience.

Would the Bangalore hospital be involved in research and academia?

We are now working the modalities of operations relationships between India and other hospital branches in other countries.

Would medical tourism be one of your key areas?

We would be looking at research, academia and medical tourism at a later stage of our development.

What business strategy would you adopt?

We would be targeting the corporates, insurance players and the TPAs. In future, insurance players would dictate the cost of various medical procedures. We have already launched competitive health packages and conducted camps in schools.

Will you go for accreditation?

Yes, we are strongly looking at it.

Tell me about Columbia Asia.

Columbia Asia is an international hospital chain promoted by US based investors, who are worldwide developers and operators of community hospitals and senior housing facilities in North America, Europe and Asia. Having started in Asia in 1996, it targets the growing middle-income groups in Asia. It opened nursing and rehabilitation facility at Shah Alam in Malaysia in 1997, a multi specialty medical centre at Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam in 1998, a multi specialty medical center in Malaysia in I995, a multi specialty medical center at Miri in Malaysia in 1999 and an out patient clinic at Saigon in Vietnam in 2000.

Will the administrative control be in the hands of Malaysian hospital? What kind of exchange would take place between the hospitals?

No, our service centre is based at Indira Nagar in Bangalore. We will work independently. However, there will be exchange of information between the hospitals.

One personal question. Is it a hurdle to understand the dynamics of managing a hospital not hailing from a medical ground? Would medicos take orders from a person who is not so familiar with their vocabulary?

The hospital would function as one team and one unit, based on sound judgement. There is no question of me dictating orders. On the contrary, I am quite open to advice. With able assistance from the group’s medical director Dr Nandkumar Jayaram, I don't think that my non-medical background would prove to be a hindrance. And it's not true that I am not familiar with the functioning of a hospital. I have a fair understanding of the craft, thanks to my brother who is a doctor in Cambridge, and sister in law, a general surgeon with the Harvard Medical Hospital system.

What learnings would you borrow from your experience with the hospitality sector?

Willingness to look after consumer needs, importance of care, courtesy, attending to patients'complaints and giving assurance to consumers. We want to be the forerunners in providing all the qualities.

From armymen, MBAs to people from the hospitality. Is the trend of men at the helm of hospital administration changing?

A few colleagues of mine from the hospitality industry have joined the hospital industry. But, I can't say whether we are trend setters.

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