HEALTHCARE WITH A HEART
BEST VACCINE DELIVERY PROGRAMME BY PRIVATE HOSPITAL
WINNER: Narayana Health (Narayana Hrudayalaya Limited), Bengaluru
WHY THEY WON: Free vaccination in slums, construction sites and villages. Narayana Health also tied up with trusts and RWAs, and roped in gram panchayats and ASHA workers to take the drive far and wide
Pledged to provide healthcare with a human touch, Narayana Health has been at the forefront in fighting the Covid pandemic, directing its core efforts towards vaccination and organising free inoculation camps in some of the most underserved communities.
Capitalising on the healthcare provider’s IT-driven strengths, the vaccination programme has a four-pronged approach: vaccination at hospitals for a fee; vaccination at partner sites, with the cost borne jointly by the hospital and partner site; the ‘Get One Give One’ vaccination drive, wherein vaccine recipients at Narayana Health donate a vaccine dose for another person in need; and the ‘Vaccine on Wheels’ initiative with the Volvo group to reach out to communities in suburban and rural Karnataka.
“We are committed towards serving the needs of the underprivileged and bringing the highest standards of clinical quality to patients across the payer spectrum. At Naryana Health, the work responsibility is prioritised to—above allgive back to the community,” says Dr Devi Shetty, founder-chairman.
In its endeavour to combat vaccine hesitancy, Narayana Health has offered vaccination to all its patients, whether coming for OPD services or getting admitted to its hospitals. It took special measures to ensure safe vaccination at all sites by enforcing social distancing norms.
The network has been innovating with new models of paying for healthcare. It initiated a ‘micro health insurance scheme’ in Karnataka that inspired the state government’s Yeshasvini micro health insurance scheme for rural farmers. It is also building a next generation hospital operating system.