Express Healthcare Excellence Awards

The Race is on...

The Healthcare Excellence Awards, hosted by Express Healthcare, is all set to salute healthcare institutions which have become monuments of excellence in the industry

The year 2008 started with a positive buzz in the Indian healthcare industry. The buzz is that of Express Healthcare hosting 'Express Healthcare Excellence Awards' in Mumbai in early 2008.

The award ceremony would recognise and honour business innovation and healthcare institutions which have become monuments of excellence in the industry. The nomination forms for the same have been dispatched to hospitals across the country.

Reputed consulting firm Ernst and Young is our official process advisor. Presenting sponsor for this event is Carestream Health, knowledge partner is Hosmac India Private Ltd, gold sponsor is Beckman Coulter India Pvt Ltd and co-sponsors are 21st Century Healthcare Solution and Esaote India.

The Categories

The awards will be tapping a vast array of verticals in the industry. Nominations zeroed on will encompass categories both for individual and group hospitals. The categories where both individual and group hospitals can apply are:

• Innovative Marketing Practices
• Innovative Business Models
• Sustained Growth
• Inspirational Workplace - Best HR Practices
• Corporate Social Responsibility - Taking Healthcare to the Masses
• Leveraging Global Opportunity
• Best Managed Healthcare Programme (Health Insurance / TPA Management)

The categories where individual hospital within a group can apply are:

• Excellence in Patient Care
• nOperational Excellence
• Overall Best Hospital of the Year

We also have the Editor's Choice Awards for:

• Lifetime Achievement Award of the Year
• Most Promising Start-up of the Year
• Innovation in Surgery
• Best CEO of the Year

A cursory glance at the categories-sustained growth, innovative marketing practices, business models, best HR practices, corporate social responsibility (CSR), global opportunity and health insurance (best managed healthcare programmed)—all lead to one eye-opening conclusion— the shift of perspective from a more treatment-based structure to a skeleton which has also included management practices in its purview.

Healthcare has changed and definitely for the better. The 'Express Healthcare Excellence Awards' have been conceived by the group to felicitate the change, the transition from being a drop in the humongous ocean to the stage of being the ocean itself.

The awards is aimed to cater to all types of hospitals which includes not just corporate hospitals but even trust-run, and public hospitals. Hospitals are given the discretion to participate in more than one category, provided that they subscribe to the allopathic system of medicine.

"Express Healthcare is a respected publication in the healthcare space. If such a publication would come out with certain norms of recognition and declare awards based on the same, it is going to be watched by the industry. This will encourage competition among healthcare players to be more quality conscious" - R Basil, CEO and MD Manipal Health System,Bangalore	"Doctors are the heroes behind the scene. They keep others fit and that is how we have healthy national heroes. So, an award to recognise the efforts of real heroes (doctors) is a commendable one" - Dr G Bakthavathsalam Chairman KG Hospital Coimbatore
"It is going to set a benchmark for excellence for the industry. It would also lead to healthy competition and force us to improve our services. Ultimately, it is the patient who would benefit" - Micah Joseph Director-Administration Dr Balabbhai Nanavati Hospital Mumbai	"It is a novel idea. This will definitely inspire people who sacrifice their lives to bring the healthcare industry to the forefront" - Dr M Veera Prasad COO Care Hospital, Hyderabad
"It is very encouraging for all in the healthcare industry. It will act as an impetus to improve services and lead to healthy competition" - Col Manesh Masand CEO Jaslok Hospital, Mumbai	"This award would definitely help people, especially who are working hard on their own, to come to the national fold" - Dr Digambar Naik Vrundavan Hospital Goa
"It is a fantastic concept as we all need recognition for our achievements" - Dr Dharminder Nagar Managing Director Paras Hospitals Gurgaon	"It is a step in the right direction. This is a much-needed award for a service that is often taken for granted" - Dr V Mohan Managing Director Dr V Mohan's Diabetes Centre, Chennai

The Protocol

The forms are to be distributed to hospitals where the CEO, Chairman and MD will have to rate and put in their nominations in different categories enlisted in the forms.

The protocol entails that each participation form (one award per category) be signed by at least two experts from the organisation which includes the managing director, the CEO, the CFO, COO or board of directors from the hospital. An important point to bear in mind again—every minute detail and piece of information matters to our jury members, which will comprise the creme de la crème of experts and consultants from the industry. The hospital will have to fill in information right from the revenue break up across all specialities of the hospital, to the number of beds, number of employees, number of resident doctors, number of consultants of payroll or fee for service basis, number of patients in the year 2006-2007, both from the domestic and international front.

Hence, participate in the awards by first filling up the nomination forms. Hospitals have already started sending back their forms. So, we urge the rest of you to quickly fill up the form and send it to us. For any doubts, you can mail us at healthcare@expressindia.com. You can also downlaod the form from our website—www.expresshealthcare.in

EH News Bureau