Dr Vijay Viswanathan, Head & Chief Diabetetologist, M V Hospital for Diabetes, speaks about the factors that are hindering operational efficiency and enhanced patient experience

What is your take on the Indian healthcare sector? How do you rate Indian healthcare when it comes to providing healthcare to all?
When it comes to medicine and healthcare, India is not ahead of other nations. For a country with a population of 1.2 billion, we are not generating enough doctors, nurses and technicians. With this rate, it is very difficult to achieve India Vision 2020 and offer medical care to ensure health for all.

What are the IT investments your hospital has made over the years?
Indeed, we have invested money in developing a Health Management Information System over the years in terms of patient information, patient appointments, billing etc.

What are the top five challenges  you face in the hospital operation  and ution and how do you sail  through them?
a)      Hospital management demands  smart minds and smart technologies to keep the healthcare system running smoothly.
b)      To manage the right staff levels.
c)      Patient safety and satisfaction
d)      Rising expenditures
e)      Tough market competitions.

What is your take on the term  affordable healthcare? What  strategy you think can come handy  in making the term true for Indian  population?
Indian hospitals are establishing themselves globally as world class facilities  through national and international  accreditation. Consumers are also becoming more and more engaged in making informed decisions about their health and are well aware of the costs associated with those decisions. In order to remain competitive, healthcare providers now not only need to look at improving operational efficiency but also at the ways of enhancing patient experience.
On the other hand, in spite of all these developments, a vast majority of population is still deprived of basic health- care facilities. With the increasing population and changing epidemiology of diseases, it has become a mandatory to improve the standards of healthcare on a whole right from primary healthcare centers to district hospitals to multi speciality tertiary care hospitals. There is a need to develop healthcare system based on quality practices. Quality is the only answer for the issues like affordability, healthcare for all and also to establish India as a healthcare destination. India has got a huge potential but at the same time lack of basic facilities is hindering its growth to be able to reach its peak.

What are your views on the regulatory issues of healthcare?
Healthcare is a regulated industry. A competitive healthcare sector is critical to effective health care policies. Antitrust enforcement in the health- care sector is a major focus for the government and industry participants alike. Employers, consumers, and the government are all purchasers of healthcare services and want to have access to affordable, high-quality health care.
Healthcare providers must comply with a multitude of central and state laws in every state where they do business. They operate in a complex regulatory environment in which central healthcare laws intersect, and often overlap a variety of state-specific legislation, including state health regulations, insurance laws, antitrust laws, consumer protections laws, and other statutes. This multi-layered environment requires considerable attention in planning and implementing a health- care deal, which may require regulatory review by numerous state and central agencies

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