Innovative low-cost approach to health care service delivery in India

Revolutionising healthcare for the poorAn Indian doctor's mission to deliver low-cost hospitals could revolutionise the provision of healthcare in poorer countries

Rosalind Miller
guardian.co.uk, Friday 21 January 2011 12.00 GMT

Shetty's vision of low-cost healthcare is not confined to his native country. He believes African healthcare systems need new mechanisms to deliver better care. When he has established his model in India, he plans to take both the model and his expertise to Africa.

"In India, we have hope because we produce the largest number of doctors and nurses in the world," he says. "We have a built-in capacity to make medicine for the whole world. Our only missing link is the capacity to pay for the healthcare. With micro-health insurance taking off on a large-scale, that will be addressed. But when we look at African countries, they don't have medical or nursing colleges, so I strongly believe that the western world has to create institutions in Africa rather than giving them money. They should create institutions to train staff and build hospitals... that will be a long-lasting solution to the healthcare issues.'"

Shetty is searching for a local partner and a co-operative government in Africa to undertake a largescale project of this nature. Narayana Hrudayalaya is involved in India's flagship information technology initiative – the Pan-African e-Network Project. This partnership between the Indian and African governments, and private institutions, allows specialists at his hospitals to share their expertise with doctors in Africa through video-conferencing.