SPEECH BY HER EXCELLENCY THE PRESIDENT OF INDIA, SHRIMATI PRATIBHA DEVISINGH PATIL, AT THE INAUGURATION OF APOLLO HOSPITALS

Bengaluru, Karnataka, 1st February, 2009

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I am happy to inaugurate the Apollo Hospital in Bengaluru, which will offer services in specialities and super specialities, using the latest cutting-edge medical technology. Starting 25 years ago, the Apollo Hospitals Group, which I am told is amongst the pioneers of corporate healthcare in India, has grown very well. Today, it has over 10,000 beds across 44 hospitals in the country.

Often it happens that people have a vision and a desire to do something, but do not pursue it with a sense of mission. But as Rabindranath Tagore reminded us - you cannot cross the sea merely by standing and staring at the water. Dr. Reddy is one such person who has steered the Apollo enterprise with exceptional leadership and commitment. I convey my good wishes to Dr. Reddy and his group for the work that they are doing.

India has made rapid strides in the medical field. Indian doctors and medical professionals are rated amongst the best in the world. They have the capability and the dedication to bring excellence to the profession and to healthcare infrastructure. Some of our medical institutions in the public and private sector are acknowledged as facilities that compare with leading medical institutions in developed countries. The high standard of medical care and talent in the medical science field in India, along with comparative cost advantages, has resulted in the country becoming a destination for medical treatment. India is now viewed as one of the important hubs for medical tourism, with patients coming from many countries for medical purposes. According to a report by CII-McKenzie, Indian medical tourism is likely to generate over US $ 2 billion by 2012. I understand that a large number of foreign patients visit Apollo and it has recently received certification from a US insurance company for its quality of services. This speaks of its global standing. The Apollo Hospital Group has also contributed to meeting the increasing healthcare demands of our country. I am glad to know that Dr. Reddy is currently looking at extending quality healthcare to non-metro cities through the REACH hospitals.

So important is the necessity of having good health, that since ancient times, good fortune has been equated with good health. A healthy individual has the capacity to live life fully, to work and thus contribute to the growth of society and the nation. Expanding the coverage of health services, giving access to affordable medical facilities to the over one billion population, along with ensuring quality service across a vast spectrum of healthcare should be our objective. Our healthcare system faces various deficiencies ranging from shortages of doctors, paramedics and infrastructure and their uneven spread across the country. We would need more and more doctors and more and more facilities for our population. Functional partnerships between the community, Government and the private sector to meet these challenges, with a focus on the social aspects of providing medical assistance, can be the effective pathway for the future.

Our aim is to build a more equitable health system. Making affordable medical facilities accessible to all, with a focus on the disadvantaged sections of society and those living in rural areas is a national priority. 75 percent of our medical facilities are located in urban areas while 70 percent of our population lives in villages, where medical facilities are limited and often located some distance away. This situation needs correction. Government has launched various health programmes including the National Rural Health Mission. I would urge that as we expand our medical facilities, which we must, we should extend these to the rural areas. Groups like Apollo Hospital can render community services by holding regular medical camps in rural areas to provide medical assistance to all those living in surrounding villages. Technology based initiatives like telemedicine should be employed to broaden the reach of healthcare. Private hospitals can also consider setting up special windows for providing medical support to the weaker sections of society as part of their social responsibility.

According to a recent UNICEF report, in our country, one woman dies every seven minutes due to child birth complications. One million children born in India are dying every year before they become 28 days old. These figures point towards the work that we need to do to protect children from infections and reduce the rate of maternal mortality. This task needs our foremost attention, along with action to halt the practice of female foeticide. People are misusing modern technologies for identifying the gender of the child in the womb. This is unlawful, and no doctor should extend any support whatsoever, to those who seek so, for this purpose. Even in the event, if tests are to be undertaken for any other medical purposes, at no stage should the gender of the foetus be disclosed, as part of our effort to save the unborn girl child and, indeed, society from an unbalanced population ratio.

The medical community of India should keep pace with the discoveries of medical science and also focus on promoting research and development efforts in its medical institutions, for the welfare of humankind. The curative aspect of healthcare is very important, but along with it, a broad approach that looks at the entire range of healthcare from preventive to rehabilitation should be adopted, which can result in a higher dividend in terms of healthy individuals.

It is often said that good health practices can begin at home by making people aware about hygiene, healthy lifestyles and basic awareness. I am told that a large number of infant and child deaths in India are on account of diarrhoea, whose treatment is as simple as oral re-hydration salts and cleanliness. Health awareness campaigns on a massive scale, by adopting systematic programmes for slum dwellers and rural areas of our population, will be a great service to humanity. Awareness about ill-effects of addiction to drugs, liquor, tobacco and opium and other addictive substances, would go a long way towards better health awareness. With this you will be directly helping poverty alleviation also.

Preventive healthcare, which includes timely inoculation, is a significant aspect of medical action. The annual National Immunization Day, which I inaugurated yesterday by administering Polio drops, was with the purpose of creating awareness and encouraging all, not to miss or forget vaccine dates. Private hospitals should come out to provide support to State and National health initiatives, for eradication of diseases. At the recent Leprosy Seal Campaign function, I asked the stakeholders to work for its eradication from India and also look at the rehabilitation of those afflicted by leprosy. And, may I tell you that a lot of good work is being done in India on this. I would also like to call for more work on rehabilitation medicine, which is important to deal with disabilities arising out of disease or infirmities related to old age. Geriatric medicine and care is essential to enhance the quality of life of our older population. A comprehensive health and medical care structure must work in these various aspects of medical science, so that people can fully benefit from it.

I would urge that doctors and medical practitioners follow the highest standards of medical ethics, so as to maintain the reputation of the medical profession of being a humane service. In the ancient Indian text, "Charaka Samhita", which contains a code of ethics for doctors, it is stated that the best among doctors, is one who works out of compassion for fellow human beings.

Through the vast integrated network that now spans almost every sphere of activity in the healthcare space, the Apollo Hospital Group has the ability to make a difference to the health sector. I wish the Apollo family good luck and appreciate the good work being done by them.

Thank you.