 UK healthcare mission in Chennai
A UK healthcare delegation was in Chennai from October 4-6 to meet healthcare experts in the city and explore opportunities for partnerships with Indian healthcare companies and hospitals. This was the fourth UK business delegation to visit Chennai in the last five weeks.
In Chennai on 5th October, the mission addressed the 'India-UK Healthcare Seminar:Exploring Partnerships', attended by leading representatives from south India's vibrant healthcare sector. Stephen Lillie, director of Trade and Investment, British High Commission, said, "I am delighted that this mission is showcasing the latest developments ftom UK healthcare. With India's healthcare sector growing impressively, this is the right time to explore partnerships and strategic alliances."
The mission was led by David Hawkins, business adviser with UK Trade & Investment (UKTI). He has over three decades of experience in the global pharmaceutical industry. He now helps build healthcare partnerships between the UK and India.
UKTI is the UK government organisation that supports companies in the UK trading internationally and overseas enterprises seeking to locate in the UK.
The UK Healthcare Mission:
BDKT Lifescience Facilities - clinical trials programmes and disease management studies;
The Health Quality Service - hospital accreditation service;
Life Science Partners - in vitro clinical diagnostics, medical devices;
Operations India - health service packages for UK patients using India's leading hospitals;
Vernagroup - pressure relieving mattresses and washable incontinence products; and
Kadir - management and motivational workshops for corporate clients.
Mike Connor, British Deputy High Commissioner in Southern India, speaking at the seminar on October 5, said, "This seminar is taking place at a good time. The Indian economy is growing at an impressive rate. Recently published figures show that it grew at 8.1 per cent in Q2 this year. And growth is also taking place in the healthcare sector. You have doubtless had a lot of statistics thrown at you. But a few more won't go amiss:
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The healthcare industry in India employs over four million people, which makes it one of the largest service sectors in the economy.
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And there is growing demand for private healthcare treatment.
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In 2002, health insurance premiums in India grew by 40 per cent.
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In 2003, they grew again by 59 per cent.
I understand that premiums paid in the healthcare sector are now higher than those in the engineering sector.
"This growth trend is set to continue. As a result of the growing middle class, India's healthcare spending is expected to double over the next 10 years. Private healthcare will form a large proportion of this spending, rising from Rs 690 billion ($ 14.8 billion) to Rs 1,560 billion ($ 33.6 billion) in 2012. We also hear an increasing amount about healthcare tourism. In the last five years, the number of overseas patients visiting India for medical treatment has risen 10 times (10,000 to about 100,000). According to Apollo group chairman, Mr. Pratap Reddy, whom I met last week, 10 per cent of the patients treated at his hospitals are from overseas. A joint study by the Confederation of Indian Industry and McKinsey reveals that at the current pace of growth, healthcare tourism can exceed $ 2 billion in value by 2012."
He said there were plenty of opportunities for British and Indian companies to work together to the benefit of both the economies.
Connor added, "Allow me to say something about Chennai and the healthcare sector: Last week I called on the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu and mentioned that a British healthcare delegation was visiting Chennai and that today's seminar was taking place. She told me, with some justification, that Chennai is the healthcare capital of India. She also invited me to visit one of the government hospitals here in Chennai, which I am told is the largest in Asia. I have not yet had the chance to take up her invitation, but I have visited a number of private sector facilities: the Apollo Hospital, Frontier Lifeline heart hospital and MV Diabetes.
"They confirm Chennai's growing status as a location for world-class hospitals and healthcare facilities," he said, adding that "this reputation is not a new phenomenon. Chennai in particular and South India in general has a long-standing reputation for healthcare innovation."
One of the first woman doctors in the English-speaking world qualified from the Madras Medical School in 1878: a British lady called Mary Ann Oacomb Scharlieb. This at a time when women were not allowed to train as doctors in the UK. The Madras Medical School continued this tradition when the first woman Indian doctor qualified here a few years later.
And then there is Apollo hospital, India's first corporate hospital. Chennai has continued to build on this pioneering work.
He said the time is right for India and the UK to build even closer links in the healthcare industry to enable our people and economies to benefit. Our historical and trading links stretch back for centuries. We understand the way each other does business. The UK is India's third largest trade partner and fourth largest investor".
"And in the other direction, the UK is the top destination for Indian businesses investing in Europe. In 2005 alone, 36 Indian new Indian projects have been set up in the UK. So there are plenty of opportunities for partnership," he pointed out.
R Rangaraj
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