Automotive Axles-Kalyani Meritor, Gopala Gowda Hospital and Ashakirana Charitable Trust partner with District Administration
Mysore/Mysuru: At a time when no District Hospital in Karnataka runs on a Public-Private-Partnership (PPP) model at present and there is a history of failed PPP arrangements in running Primary Health Centres (PHCs), Mysuru has achieved the distinction of opening the first COVID healthcare unit at Princess Krishnajammanni Super-Speciality Hospital, located on KRS Road behind Trauma Care Centre.
The District Administration had some time back announced that this Super-Speciality Hospital with 220 beds will be converted into a COVID Hospital. Joining hands with the Government (Mysore Medical College and Research Institute) in this first Private-Public Joint Venture is Automotive Axles-Kalyani Meritor HVS India (P) Ltd. that is sponsoring medical and critical care equipment, Ashakirana Charitable Trust and Gopal Gowda Shanthaveri Memorial Hospital that are jointly providing medical care facilities and manpower, logistic supplies management and also overall management of the healthcare unit.
The Hospital will start functioning from today with 25 beds and the remaining 75 beds will be added in phases in the next 10 days. Automotive Axles-Kalyani Meritor HVS India has donated 100 hi-tech beds at an estimated cost of about Rs. 2 crore to Rs. 2.5 crore. As per the communication from the District Administration, initially, 30 ICU (Intensive Care Unit) beds and 40 HDU (High Dependency Unit) beds will be available and gradually scaled up to 100 beds.
Hospital visit
Deputy Commissioner Rohini Sindhuri visited the Hospital last evening along with President and Executive Director of Meritor HVS India Dr. N. Muthukumar, Dr. H.V. Santhrupth, General Surgeon and Head of Gopala Gowda Shanthaveri Memorial Hospital, K.S. Gururaja, Founder Trustee, Ashakirana Trust, MMC&RI Dean Dr. C.P. Nanjaraj and Nodal Officer Dr. Mohan. This morning, Mysuru-Kodagu MP Pratap Simha visited the Hospital and examined the facilities. He interacted with the staff working there to set up the ICU, monitors and related critical care equipment.
In a statement, Rohini Sindhuri has said that in Mysuru there has been a persistent need to increase ICU beds and even at this juncture, there is a waiting line of 25 patients in oxygen beds to be shifted to ICUs.
“The challenges have been manpower (specialists, doctors, nurses and Group D workers) and equipment. We are trying out this PPP model wherein doctors from Gopala Gowda Hospital have collaborated with the Super Speciality Hospital and MMC&RI to monitor the ICU care. This solves our manpower issue. Meritor Group’s Dr. Muthukumar has supplied the ICU beds, BiPAP machines and monitors. This solves our equipment issue,” she said.
“We have been working on this for the past 15 days and from May 20 (today), there will be 30 beds available and gradually will be increased up to 100 ICU beds. We hope that this will ease the demand for ICU beds in Mysuru. However, since people from neighbouring districts and Bengaluru too come to Mysuru in search for ventilators, this has been a constant struggle,” DC Rohini Sindhuri added.
‘We want to save lives’
Speaking to Star of Mysore, Dr. H.V. Santhrupth said the Private and Public sectors have come together to save lives in Mysuru. “We at Gopala Gowda Hospital will provide doctors, nurses, intensivists and pulmonologists in coordination with MMC&RI. It is a noble initiative to save lives and the Government too has extended full support,” he said.
K.S. Gururaja of Ashakirana Trust told SOM that the initiative took birth during a discussion with Dr. Santhrupth and Dr. Muthukumar. “We (Ashakirana) collaborated for vaccinating the public and we wanted to do more for Mysuru in critical times and Muthukumar volunteered to take over one entire floor of a hospital and supply beds and equipment and Dr. Santhrupth volunteered to provide medical care. We discussed the proposal with DC Rohini Sindhuri and this is becoming a reality now and we will have a full-fledged 100-bed advanced ICU facility on the fourth floor of the Princess Krishnajammanni Super Speciality Hospital,” he said.
Logistics and medical care management
Explaining the details further, Gururaja said that once the plan was formulated, equipment suppliers were contacted and all the logistics were worked out. “We have already appointed 14 doctors and nursing staff for the venture and the complete logistics management will be taken care by Ashakirana and the medical care will be provided by Gopala Gowda Hospital,” he said.
Among the 100 beds, 40 will have ventilators and 60 will be oxygenated beds. “Seeing the initiative taking shape, Dr. Shyam, Dr. Sudhir and Dr. Sangeetha of Ashakirana Trust have come forward to donate beds and also serve the patients,” he said.
Gururaja’s son Varun Gururaja has been named the CEO of the venture between Ashakirana and Gopala Gowda Hospital. Ashok from Meritor is coordinating with the team. “Varun, who has a technology background, is looking after all the arrangements at the new hospital and he is also setting up the medical infrastructure by coordinating with sponsors, suppliers and also physically supervising the setting up of machines,” he said.
Gururaja added that after the COVID pandemic is over, the Ashakirana Trust will coordinate with MMC&RI to take care of non-COVID patients at this hospital for five years. “We have conveyed this to the District Administration and we will serve the Super Speciality Hospital for five years,” he said.
An excellent initiative under PPP model. Since there will be a 100 bed ICU, the hospital willl do well to have their own captive oxygen manufacturing plant, inside their campus. Hope this hospital will have the advantage of govt hospitals in terms of charges and the healthcare provided by private hospitals. If successful, many other districts can also benefit from setting up similar public-private partnership hospitals.