India is emerging as a world leader in teaching and framing of robotics in healthcare – Dr. (Mrs). Vandana Talwar, Medical Superintendent, VMMC & Safdarjang Hospital

New Delhi : “The Ayushman Bharat Digital mission will bridge the existing gap among different stakeholders of healthcare ecosystem through digital highways. The mission has achieved a significant milestone by issuing more than 50 lakh digital tokens for queue less OPD registrations. AI is poised to reshape healthcare, ML algorithms can analyse massive amounts of medical data to aid early detection and treatment of disease, and they can also optimise hospital operations and even assist in surgical procedures. India is emerging as a world leader in teaching and framing of robotics in healthcare. A Robotic renal transplant conducted in Safdarjang Hospital was shown live to 52 medical colleges and 20 different countries on the NFC portal recently. We are committed to improving the quality of healthcare to meet the Health related targets of the Sustainable Development Goals that India aims to achieve Universal Health Coverage by 2023.” said Dr. (Mrs). Vandana Talwar, Medical Superintendent, VMMC & Safdarjang Hospital, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Govt. of India while speaking at the 2nd Healthcare Summit and Awards organised by ASSOCHAM.

“The past few decades has witnessed enormous medical advancements in therapeutic and diagnostics that has revolutionised diagnosis, treatment and prevention of diseases. From the invention of penicillin to the development of gene therapy for amelioration of previously untreatable genetic disorders, innovation has been the keystone for transforming medical care for the masses. Advances in genome sequencing technology has made personalised medicines a reality. Today, technological advancement has enabled a policy of creating a new digital ecosystem that not only enhances accessibility and efficiency of healthcare delivery but also made it more cost effective and paves the way for universal health coverage in India that is inclusive, timely and safe. PPP is the next growth catalyst for the healthcare industry in India and is a win-win situation for all stakeholders.” She said.

“Innovations and sustainable solutions is the future of healthcare which occupies a pivotal role in the development of India today. The future belongs to a society investing in healthcare. As we navigate the 21st century, we are in the brink of a new era in healthcare driven by ground breaking innovations and a pressing need for sustainable solutions. Healthcare systems around the world generate a significant footprint from energy intensive equipment’s to disposal of single use plastics among others. As we look into the future, the imperative for sustainable solution becomes clearer. We must design healthcare infrastructure that minimises environmental impacts, reduces waste through recycling and reuse and adopt renewable energy sources for a more sustainable healthcare system. The health of our planet and wellbeing of its inhabitants are intrinsically connected. The strides we make in healthcare innovation will significantly impact the quality of healthcare in the future generations to come.” She added.

Delivering a special address at the Summit, Prof. (Dr.) Rajinder K Dhamija, Director, Institute of Human Behaviour and Allied Sciences (IHBAS), Government of NCT of Delhi said, “We have achieved a lot in the last 75 years. We are now a hub of vaccination industry providing 60 percent of all vaccinations in the world. We also provide 40 percent of all generics for the US and 25 percent of all generics in the UK and two-thirds of all anti-viral drugs in the world comes from India. The healthcare industry is worth $50 billion and growing at a fast pace. India spends 4-5% of GDP on health which is comparatively lower that countries like Australia at 12% and Switzerland at 17% of GDP. We need to increase our spending on health. Our per-capita expenditure on health has increased over the past 10 years and the insurance sector is coming in a big way and so is digital health. We are lagging in manpower, for a population of 1.4 billion people we have only three thousand neurologist while there is a need for atleast five times that number. Similarly we have nine thousand psychiatrist when the requirement is for atleast thirty thousand. There are only three thousand clinical psychologist while we need more ten thousand. We as a society need to de-stigmatise mental health and improve our mental health literacy.”

Addressing the summit, Ms. Pushpa Vijayaraghavan, Director – Healthcare & Life Sciences, Sathguru Management Consultants said, “There is a need to urgently address the continuing challenge of resource scarcity. The number of doctors per individuals and the number of beds per individuals are currently below what it should be and we cannot bridge it without integrating technology in a big way. India’s presidency of G20 has brought digital health to the fore. The impetus adoption of innovation has improved post-covid and we are seeing continued engagement with innovation. We have seen a truly sustainable behavioural change come in, in-terms of both institutional perception as well as clinical adoption and consumer/patient adoption of innovations.India’s target to achieve net-zero by 2070 has put the onus on every part of the eco-system to ensure focus on sustainability and energy efficiency.”

A knowledge paper on Indian Healthcare – Expanding Care, Embracing Innovation, Pursuing Sustainable Transformation prepared in collaboration with Sathguru Management Consultants was released at the Summit. An Awards ceremony to recognise and facilitate achievers in various categories of healthcare delivery was also held at the summit. The summit also saw engaging discussions on pertinent topics related to healthcare where eminent personalities from the government, private and research sectors participated in the deliberations.