Wockhardt
Hospital & Heart Institute on Cunningham Road has become
a renowned tertiary level heart centre, providing cardiac care
to patients of all age groups including newborns. Bangalorebest.com
spoke to Vishal Bali, GM, Wockhardt on the changing trends
in the health care industry.
On Wockhardt… " Wockhardt, started in 1990, is the first
single corporate specialty hospital in India. We offer cardio
vascular-angiograms, angioplasty, by-pass surgery and treatment
in all types of cardiac disorders. We have a full time cardiac
specialist Dr Vivek Jawali, who is an expert in by-pass surgery.
We at Wockhardt have performed the highest number of
open-heart surgeries in India from the past 5 years. We have
a team of 14 cardio vascular surgeons working full time
for us. We offer excellent cardiac care, which is a mix and
match of good clinical work and value for money."
How did you get into health care? " (Laughs) I got into health care more by default. I am
an MBA. In 1991, I came to Wockhardt as a management
trainee for one year. As there are no set rules for professionals
in this industry, my 'one-year' never got over! I
started liking the job here and started deriving immense satisfaction
from this job. That was when I decided that I should stick to
this place. Today, even after 10 years here, I still
love what I am doing, and with the growing demand for health
care in India, there is an increasing demand for professionals
also in this industry. Health care has a very bright future
and the whole industry will soon be managed by professionals."
On their clientele…. " Wockhardt caters to every section
of the society. 'Care' is not a domain of any particular
section of society! A good cardiac care is to be given to all,
irrespective of their class, creed or position. Here at Wockhardt,
we have nursing practices of international standards."
How is it possible for people with limited resources to avail
these facilities?
" 40% of our patients are from outside Bangalore and
20% are from the interiors of Karnataka.
We have wards of three different categories, viz: private,
semi-private and deluxe, with a difference of 20-25%
between the semi-private and private and 40% between
private and deluxe. We also do a lot of charity but never talk
about it. Generally, people come to us with a recommendation
letter from their doctors for concessions and we have always
obliged. If someone is brought here, we do not see the person's
status or money before treating him or her. If they are unable
to pay our bills later, that is also taken care of by us."
On privatization of health care…
" Medicine has not become a business. It is just the privatization
of health care and nothing else. Over time, government hospitals
have been incapable of keeping a track of the changing technology.
That is the reason why many private hospitals have come up and
people actually prefer them! These private hospitals have been
playing a major role in health care and value schemes. Everybody
wants value for money and, thus, the cost of maintenance becomes
very high. But, compared to western countries, where an open-heart
surgery would costs $25,000, in India the same thing
costs $3000 only! So, it is up to the people to decide
whether medicine has become a business or not!"
The impersonal attitude of doctors in treating patients…
" Yes, I agree to what you are saying. But, this thing doesn't
happen here at Wockhardt at all. All our doctors work full time
with us.
They are able to devote their maximum time to each of their
patients. Most of the time, this problem arises with visiting
doctors, who have to go to different places to visit patients.
Our doctors work in groups of three or four, and if one of them
wants to unwind, the others take over in his/her absence."
On tie-ups with different insurance companies…
" Wockhardt is the only hospital in South Asia recognized by
the BlueCross International Insurance Company. Across
the globe only 16 hospitals have been granted a tie-up
with this US-based, largest health care insurance company in
the world. With this, a patient can claim their insurance anywhere
in the world. We also have a tie-up with Mediclaim, where
a patient has to first clear their bills with us and then claim
the amount from Mediclaim."
Wockhardt's unique features …
" There are too many of unique features to mention! We have
a thing called 'Wockhardt Life Link', the first of its
kind in the world, wherein any relative of the patient can pay
the bills from anywhere in the world. 'Wockhardt Cardiac
Line' is another feature, where any person in immediate
need of cardiac consultancy can dial an emergency number 2268888.
A van will be sent to get them with a doctor, who will communicate
to the other doctor in the hospital and make the required immediate
arrangements for the patient before their arrival. Meanwhile,
the doctor at the hospital would keep advising the patient what
to do while the van is on its way to pick them up! The 'Virtual
Family Visit' is the other feature, where we record an audio-visual
file of the patient and this is uploaded on our site. Through
this file, the kith and kin of that particular patient can see
them and hear them saying they are fine. This really helps in
reducing the anxiety of the relatives of a patient."
2:55:25 AM 
Wockhardt
Hospital & Heart Institute on Cunningham Road has become
a renowned tertiary level heart centre, providing cardiac care
to patients of all age groups including newborns. Bangalorebest.com
spoke to Vishal Bali, GM, Wockhardt on the changing trends
in the health care industry. 
I
started liking the job here and started deriving immense satisfaction
from this job. That was when I decided that I should stick to
this place. Today, even after 10 years here, I still
love what I am doing, and with the growing demand for health
care in India, there is an increasing demand for professionals
also in this industry. Health care has a very bright future
and the whole industry will soon be managed by professionals."
Karnataka.
We have wards of three different categories, viz: private,
semi-private and deluxe, with a difference of 20-25%
between the semi-private and private and 40% between
private and deluxe. We also do a lot of charity but never talk
about it. Generally, people come to us with a recommendation
letter from their doctors for concessions and we have always
obliged. If someone is brought here, we do not see the person's
status or money before treating him or her. If they are unable
to pay our bills later, that is also taken care of by us." 
They are able to devote their maximum time to each of their
patients. Most of the time, this problem arises with visiting
doctors, who have to go to different places to visit patients.
Our doctors work in groups of three or four, and if one of them
wants to unwind, the others take over in his/her absence." 
