Kaniza Garari
IndiGlobal Media Network
Healthcare disparities in India are due to lack of awareness, access and affordability. Health equity is a long way to go. Existing infrastructure and qualified doctors are in metro cities, one or two tier towns while there is a majority of population in three and four tier cities who do not have access to good medical care.
To address these gaps in the healthcare system, Sanrai Med India is advocating ‘Hospital Grade Care at Home’. The company is under the leadership of mother and daughter Jaspreet Rai and Amarpreet Rai where they are offering tailor-made healthcare solutions.
Indiglobal Media Network in an exclusive interview with Amarpreet Rai, Co-Founder and Director of Operations and Development, Sanrai Med India talks about the company and why is it important to address this gap to achieve health equity.
1. Where are gaps being noted in health awareness in India? With the pandemic health hygiene got a major push but where does one see the low lights? Which sectors of the society?
In India, the healthcare system varies widely depending on location, socioeconomic status and also other factors. At one end are the glitzy steel and glass structures delivering high tech medical care. At the other end are government health centres that are desperately waiting to be upgraded. While India is known for being the world’s pharma capital, its unequal healthcare system has created a situation where the wealthy
have access to some of the best care in the world, and the impoverished have limited options.
- Low health awareness in India is due to lower education levels, poor health functional literacy, and low priority for health in the population, among others.
- Absence of effective investment by the government to improve health system in India.
As per the national health policy the government expenditure on public health must be 1 percent to 2.5 to 3 percent of GDP but the central government allocated only 0.34 per cent of GDP in 2021-22. This gap needs to be addressed to make health equitable and accessible for all.
2. In cities too, the disparity in healthcare facilities is very high and despite the existing government schemes what is the reason for the gaps?
Urban populations have limited access to healthcare facilities especially when it comes to primary care in India.
- Nine of India’s poorest states–home to 581 million or 48% of India’s population–account for 70% of the country’s infant deaths, 75% of under-five deaths and 62% of maternal death, according to an IndiaSpend analysis of 2017 Reserve Bank of India data on state budgets.
For example- NCT Delhi has merely eight Primary Health Centres (PHCs), no Community Health Centres (CHCs) and 134 tertiary care hospitals, which includes general as well as speciality, super and multi-speciality hospitals. Delivering healthcare in the urban slums of India remains one of the biggest challenges. Unfortunately, when impoverished individuals are required to pay for their own healthcare, they don’t invest in preventative care, only emergency care. Government healthcare infrastructure also focuses more on emergency care than long term care.
3. Which sectors require more focus?
Indian healthcare requires access to high-quality medical solutions and equipment along with increased awareness, diligent service, support, and training framework. There’s limited knowledge and awareness about the advanced healthcare solutions available in the market.
As the population ages, chronic diseases like heart disease, respiratory diseases like COPD or sleep apnea, diabetes, etc. are becoming more and more prevalent. They require early treatment and intervention but many in two to three tier cities are not aware of the same.
4. How can technology be leveraged to reach out to the lowest sectors of society?
Covid-19 has strengthened the focus on effective healthcare delivery and healthcare infrastructure, and showing how digital health offerings can address the existing gaps. Companies across the spectrum from clinical research firms to hospitals are adopting novel technology platforms to make healthcare more accessible to patients who have limited access due to geographic distance, transportation issues, or other barriers to visiting a healthcare facility in person. Innovative solutions, along with integration of smart technologies, data science and analytics, have the potential to address the changing demand of healthcare services.
If India wants to realize this goal of making healthcare equitable for all, it is imperative that technology plays a significant role.
5. In terms of geographical barriers, there are also language barriers and how are these being addressed as that plays a major role in reaching out?
Despite a growing recognition of the importance of doctor-patient communication, the issue of language barriers to healthcare in India has received little attention. The main way to address language barriers is to make sure there are trained clinicians, both doctors and nurses from each region. This will go a long way.
6. What made the mother-daughter duo take this up?
The thought of Sanrai came when back in 2006 when my mom’s grandmother had a respitory illness and she didn’t get access to the kind of medical care which was available in US. She was prescribed an oxygen concentrator and we tried to buy it in India, but to our surprise, the price was three times as much as what we paid in the US. The oxygen concentrator was delivered to her residence by a reputed company with no knowledge, training and support given during the time of the product delivery.
During those times, the concept of homecare didn’t exist in India. This void of accessible healthcare devices and education really prompted us to start Sanrai in 2008 whose vision is to not only to sell hospital grade home care devices but also to educate and give families the support they need it comes to battling long term, chronic illnesses.
7. How are they addressing connectivity, affordability and accessibility for health?
Sanrai Med India is a leading provider of innovative, reliable, and FDA approved medical equipment and devices for patients in India. We are a homecare company working directly with patients for oxygen and sleep therapy from our 16 offices across India. We provide a wide variety of personalized rental, purchase, and service plans and has a customized solution for every patient, making disease management a hassle-free process for our customers.
India’s home healthcare market is growing at 8% per year, and the population is ageing faster than expected. As a result, the percentage of healthcare spent on chronic illnesses as opposed to acute illness is increasing significantly.
