Over 2000 delegates from over 26 countries gathered at the 7th International Patient Safety Conference (IPSC) and the 8th edition of Revolutionizing Healthcare through IT (RHIT). The IPSC event witnessed collaboration with eminent speakers and international agencies including WHO, IMA, AIIMS, IMA, KPMG, JCI (US), NABH, NHS and leading Indian providers. Dr. Deepak Sawant, Minister of Public Health & Family Welfare, Government of Maharashtra and Dr Pradip Vyas, Health Secretary, Government of Maharashtra addressed the 7th International Patient Safety Conference. The Union Minister of State for Health & Family Welfare, Smt. Anupriya Patel addressed a Joint Plenary session on Patient Safety and IT in healthcare. Dr Deepak Sawant, Minister of Public Health & Family Welfare said, “I am glad, that an international conference is being organized on the subject of patient safety – which is very close to my heart. Today we have almost 6 crore people being treated in India and ‘affordability with safety’ is a concern for all. In this regard I would like to request accreditation bodies to minimise the clerical work involved and focus on the practical on-ground realities so that patient safety is accorded focus rather than paper work.” Commenting on the issues that patients and hospitals face today, he said, “It is important that hospitals train staff to manage not just the patients but also the family and emphasise communication and transparency so that incidents of patient distress are avoided.” Addressing the session, Smt. Patel said, “Patient safety and the use of technology in healthcare will be the great driving force for creating a health system that is accessible, equitable and affordable. The government is very keen in addressing the patient safety challenge and improving healthcare through IT. This we believe can be met through a cross-sectoral approach, that is partnerships, collaborations and policy formulations. I must commend Dr Reddy for organizing these two conferences on subjects that shall prove to be pivotal for the future of healthcare in our country.” Sharing his thoughts, Dr. Prathap C. Reddy, Chairperson and founder, Apollo Hospitals Group said, “We believe that patient safety is a subject of great concern and should be addressed on priority to counter the healthcare challenges. It is not just the role of government, but we as healthcare providers need to come together and bring in the global best practices on patient safety in India. I am glad to see such an overwhelming response to this initiative from all peers and public bodies.” Addressing the plenary session of the patient safety conference Dr. Preetha Reddy, Vice Chairperson, Apollo Hospitals Group said, “Safeguarding patient interest and safety requires us to adopt a holistic & systematic approach that extends across professional, cultural, technological and procedural boundaries. In order to do this, we have to increase engagement with patients, care-givers, the public, clinical partners, healthcare organisations, and the government. Unfortunately, while longstanding issues remain unresolved, new threats to patient safety emerge each day. Patient safety is the first principle and should be continually at the core of all we do. In order to do so, healthcare systems need to become accessible, affordable and accountable.” Talking on the adoption of the Mumbai Declaration, Ms. Sangita Reddy, Joint Managing Director, Apollo Hospitals said, “The Mumbai Declaration marks a paradigm move to ensure that patient safety becomes sacrosanct to the way care is delivered. The declaration will make patient centricity, the bedrock in the age of Urbanisation and Democratisation of healthcare. We urge all stakeholders – doctors, hospitals, policymakers and the Government to further the philosophy of the Mumbai Declaration and usher in an era of quality care that is accessible to all.” The Mumbai Declaration on Patient Safety recommends that separate forums be created for antibiotic policy framework, facility safety framework, overall patient safety standards and a forum for measuring and monitoring outcomes at the government level. It recommends each hospital to drive on the principles defined by the declaration, which are as follows: Every hospital shall have a person designated for patient safety Every hospital shall have a Patient Safety Committee with representatives from medical services, nursing, engineering, housekeeping, pharmacy and infection control that shall meet every quarter Every hospital shall train all its employees on patient safety issues and hand washing Every hospital shall educate its patients on patient safety issues and give them opportunity to ask questions Every hospital shall have a policy and implemented system on reporting of adverse events within the organization Every hospital shall cooperate with one another and exchange information about adverse events, including errors, their solutions, and “lessons learned” to improve patient safety Every hospital shall collect rates for the following patient safety indices: Patient falls Pressure ulcers Needle stick injuries Medication errors (Prescription, transcription, dispensing and administration errors) Hospital acquired infections Antibiotic utilization Hand washing Other eminent speakers speaking at the IPSC event were, Sir David Dalton, CEO, Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust, UK; Ms Paula Wilson, CEO, Joint Commission International, USA; Dr Ravi Wankhedkar, National President, IMA & Dr Jayesh Lele, IMA, Mumbai Chapter. Speakers at the RHIT event included speakers like Alexander Thomas, Executive Director, Association of Healthcare Providers of India, Deepak Agarwal, Chairman, Department of Computerization AIIMS, New Delhi; Keith Fraidenburg, Executive VP & COO, CHIME, USA & Anil Bhansali, MD, Microsoft India Development Centre. The thematic topics of this year’s IPSC included Role of physicians in patient safety and quality improvement Use of data analytics to identify opportunities for improving patient safety

Seven Indian doctors have secured prizes from across 10 categories in the fourth edition of BMJ Awards South Asia 2017 that seeks to reward individuals and teams working tirelessly to improve the quality of healthcare across the region. The 2017 Awards, which received over 2000 high-quality nominations from eight countries across South Asia including India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Bhutan, Myanmar and Maldives, spanned across a diverse and egalitarian mix of categories ranging from healthcare quality, medical education, technological innovation and research, and clinical excellence. “Every year, we wish to further raise the bar with BMJ Awards South Asia. We hope clinicians utilise this platform to showcase to the world how their efforts are transforming healthcare,” Prashant Mishra, Managing Director of medical journal BMJ India, said in a statement on Monday. While Ritesh Agarwal, from Max Smart Super Specialty Hospital, Delhi won in the category “Infectious Disease Initiative of the Year”, Rajendra Prasad, from Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals, Delhi, was declared winner in the category “Non-Communicable Disease Initiative of the Year”. In the category “Excellence in Medical Education”, Sonal Asthana, from Aster CMI Hospital, Bengaluru, won the award, while Lallu Joseph, from Christian Medical College, Vellore, secured first place in the category of “Quality Improvement Team of the Year”. Swati Mahendru from Manipal University, ranked highest in the category “Post Graduate Thesis of the Year”, and Lobsang Tsetim from Ramakrishna Mission Hospital, Itanagar, secured the first spot in the category “Surgical Team of the Year”. In the category “Maternal and Child Health Team of the Year”, Aarti Avinash Kinikar, from B.J. Government Medical College and Sassoon General Hospital, Pune, won the award. “The work done by all the winners are of highest standards and innovative in approach, that eventually makes a positive impact on the lives of many a people,” added Fiona Godlee, Editor-in-Chief, The BMJ.

The objective of the Times All India Lifestyle Hospital and Clinic Ranking Survey 2017 was to arrive at the list of top hospitals and clinics in India for the current year. The specialties that were included in the research were Orthopedics, Dentistry, Diabetology, Skin and Dermatology, Plastic Surgery, Hair (Trichology), Ophthalmology and Bariatrics. The categories in which Apollo Hospitals Group have ranked include Bariatrics, Diabetology, Orthopedics, Cosmetic and Plastic Surgery, Skin and Dermatology.

Ahead of World Heart Day, observed on September 29, Apollo Hospitals has launched the Healthy Heart Program, which is tailored to help people who prone to heart diseases and patients already suffering from heart ailments, to arrest and reverse the progress of the disease. The Healthy Heart Program is a fee-based, annual, personalised heart disease reversal program which at the enrolment stage classifies patients into high or low risk based on a physical screening encompassing 14 important health parameters. Once enrolled, the program includes continuing Healthy heart doctor consultations, four cardiologist-physician consults/year, diet & lifestyle counselling (yoga, micronutrients and meditation) and continuous monitoring by a Customer Relationship Management infrastructure throughout their treatment. The program will be applicable across 60 centres of Apollo Hospitals in India. Persons enrolling in the program are also eligible for a 15% discount for any other interventions that might be required. People undergoing angioplasty or bypass surgery at Apollo Hospitals will be automatically be enrolled into the program free of cost for a year. This is to enhance the outcome of the interventions and prevent recurrence. Sharing his thoughts on the occasion, Dr. Prathap C. Reddy, Chairman, Apollo Hospitals said, “The demographic dividend that India enjoys is under severe threat from NCDs. Unchecked, this disease burden will take away India’s best at their most productive age. Already around 20 percent of heart attacks observed across Apollo Hospitals are in the age group of 25-35 years. With these numbers, it is difficult to guarantee the heart health of young India in the future. Through this initiative, Apollo Hospitals wants to ensure that Indians get the best of counselling and treatment. We want to nurture a Healthy India with a Healthy Heart.” Ms. Sangita Reddy, Joint Managing Director, Apollo Hospitals, says, “In keeping with the spirit of the National Health Policy, the Healthy Heart Program aims at prevention through a comprehensive approach to heart health. Most patients we see today approach the hospital or consult a doctor only when they experience some serious discomfort. This program is developed to engage with patients, as well as those prone to heart disease, well in advance to ensure that they receive all-round consultation and thereby prevent / reverse the possibility of a heart attack.” Dr K Hariprasad, President, Apollo Hospitals Division said, “There is ample global evidence from eminent medical organisations and research studies that show heart disease reversal is a reality. While hospitals in the West are running such programs successfully, unfortunately no such programs existed in India prior to this. Our Healthy Heart program is devised to fill these lacunae and make evidence-based heart disease reversal accessible to common people, outside of a research setting. One of the significant elements of this program is that it makes Cardiologists available to all those who enrol at any time for queries related to heart ailments. Once the patient has enrolled in this program, the Healthy Heart team will offer its complete care and consultation round-the-clock.”

Apollo Hospitals, Navi Mumbai, in its endeavour to bring world-class cancer care to Navi Mumbai, launched the most advanced and latest Radiation technology called TrueBeam® STx stereotactic radiosurgery system. TrueBeam® STx allows significantly faster, more precise, image-guided radiosurgery, thereby enabling us to treat tumours that are difficult to reach. The state-of-the art machine was inaugurated by Dr. Prathap C. Reddy, Chairman – Apollo Hospitals Group in the presence of Dr. Rajendra Badwe, Director – Tata Memorial Centre, Ms. Manisha Koirala, inspiring cancer survivor and acclaimed actress and Dr. Preetha Reddy, Vice-Chairperson – Apollo Hospitals Group. Sharing his thoughts on the occasion, Dr. Prathap Reddy, Chairman – Apollo Hospitals Group said, “Cancer is a leading cause of death in the country. Apollo has always believed that cancer is conquerable, with advanced technology and therapy. Hence, the initiative was taken to launch new technologies which provide patients advanced care in our home country. Apart from technology innovations, Apollo Hospitals is always on a lookout to bring newer treatment modalities. Precision Oncology is one such. It is Apollo’s unique approach to diagnosing, treating and monitoring cancer that has resulted in encouraging clinical outcomes comparable to the best in the world”. Congratulating the Apollo Hospitals Navi Mumbai team, Dr. Preetha Reddy, Vice Chairperson, Apollo Hospitals Group said, “Bringing this technology to Navi Mumbai is a significant step towards our vision of bringing top-notch cancer care based on established standards to the people of Mumbai. Patient care at Apollo Cancer Care Hospitals will have the benefit of these advancements.” TrueBeam® STx imaging and flexible architecture allows doctors the ability to interface with multiple technologies for imaging and disease-specific solutions. It is highly precise with sub-millimeter accuracy and avoids healthy cells so that there are almost nil side effects. Talking about the benefits of the TrueBeam® STx, Dr Shishir Shetty, Head – Oncology Services, Apollo Hospitals, Navi Mumbai said, “A patient has to go through a lot while undergoing cancer treatment. This technology allows doctors to minimize exposure to the surrounding healthy tissue. Average treatment time with TrueBeam® STx is also shorter, being performed in just minutes, which means that treatment is also more comfortable for the patient. The treatment system is able to rotate around the patient to deliver treatment from all angles.” “I am delighted to be launching the Apollo cancer support group called Sarathi that will bring together patients, family members, survivors and care givers as a bonded team that makes the battle against cancer less formidable and less stressful”, said Ms. Manisha Koirala, acclaimed Actress & Cancer Survivor after launching ‘Sarathi’, a cancer support group program on the occasion. Apollo Cancer Care Hospitals at Apollo Hospitals, Navi Mumbai is led by a globally acclaimed team of experts, equipped with comprehensive services across diagnosis and treatment, under one roof for oncology. Along with surgical and medical oncology, and the most advanced radiation oncology technology. The hospital would effectively be raising the bar for cancer care in the Western region and will follow internationally proven organ specific protocols and quality processes. Apollo Cancer Care offers multidisciplinary medical, surgical and radiation oncology treatments for cancer and a National Tumour Board for optimal treatment planning and execution.  

Macquarie University is Australia’s only University-led academic Health Sciences Centre. The conferral was to recognize Ms. Sangita Reddy’s untiring efforts and resolute commitment to bring transformative changes in Indian healthcare, development of Health IT in India and championing manifold initiatives both in India and abroad. Along with the conferral, Macquarie University and Apollo Hospitals have today celebrated the launch of their strategic collaboration that will facilitate long-term, mutually beneficial academic exchanges between the two organizations. As part of this collaboration, Students from Macquarie’s four-year graduate-entry Doctor of Medicine program, the Macquarie MD, will complete five months of clinical learning at the Apollo Hospital in Hyderabad as part of their degree. Dr. Prathap C. Reddy, Chairman-Founder, Apollo Hospitals who was present at the event said “We’re moving more and more towards a world without borders. Here at Apollo, we’re so much more than an Indian community, we’re a global community, and anything we can do which adds value to that, is important to us. We have the infrastructure and people to help deliver and create global doctors and are pleased to be working with Macquarie on their innovative new MD program. The benefits for the students are numerous, for example the disease profiles of the two countries are completely different, providing students with an enriching learning experience. We also treat more than half a million patients a year here at Apollo, so the quantity and breadth of the clinical cases we have will be unlike those that the students will experience in Australia.” Professor S Bruce Dowton, Vice-Chancellor Macquarie University commented “We are incredibly proud to be working with Apollo Hospital. In looking at international collaborations, we sought partners who share similar value sets, and who provide a quality and patient-centered model of care for our students to learn within. Apollo’s long-standing experience in the delivery of medical training, underpinned by its commitment to the achievement of excellence in clinical care made it the perfect partner for our MD program.” Recognizing the value of international learning, the program features extended quality-assured clinical experiences abroad for all students, including core clinical placements and selective opportunities at the Apollo Hospital in Hyderabad in addition to clinical placements in Sydney: at MQ Health, the Northern Sydney Local Health District (primarily within the Royal North Shore Hospital) and the MindSpo Clinic. The Macquarie MD program has received formal approval and accreditation from the Australian Medical Council (AMC) and Medical Board of Australia (MBA). The AMC, who visited Apollo Hospitals earlier this year, commended the clinical learning opportunities available at Apollo Hospital, and the commitment of the hospital’s clinicians and administration to facilitate the student experience during this rotation.

“I AM A SURVIVOR”, a compendium of real life and awe-inspiring stories of courageous cancer survivors, authored by renowned Oncologist and Director, Dr Vijay Anand Reddy, and published by Penguin, was formally released. Member of Parliament, Ms. K. Kavitha, released the book, at a program attended by Dr. G. N. Rao, Founder & Chairperson, LV Prasad Eye Institute, Cricketer Mr. VVS Laxman, Ms. Sangita Reddy, Joint Managing Director, Apollo Hospitals and the author Dr. Vijay Anand Reddy. Dr Vijay Anand Reddy, a cancer specialist with immense faith in his ability to provide succour to cancer patients, had the daunting task of conveying the bad word ‘cancer’ to patients and their near and dear ones. This pronouncement invariably led the patients to a sense of deep remorse, depression and a feeling of dejection with life. This desperate state of the patients seemed to haunt him to no end. He knew that most cancers are treatable with the advances in medicine and what was needed from the patient was the ability to be remain unfazed and to bravely combat it. His experience in treating such patients made him sure that a positive frame of mind could mitigate the trauma and help conquer cancer. He had no readymade solutions on how to impress upon the patients in their moment of immense despair, the need to maintain composure and battle it out with a tough frame of mind. He also realised that no amount of counselling, consoling and attempts to boost their spirit by the doctor, helps to allay their pain beyond a point. It was during such attempts to counsel patients that he realised the need to pen the experiences of some of the warriors of cancer, who could successfully decimate the disease and are a true inspiration to every cancer patient. It took Dr Vijay Anand Reddy, aided by his wife Dr. Sashi, over 3 years of toil, involving most evenings and late nights, after a busy practice through the day, to compile “I AM A SURVIVOR.” Dr Reddy, dedicated the book to his brave patients and his mother Mrs. Damayanthi Devi, whom he lost recently. “I AM A SURVIVOR” shares powerful voices and stories of hope and inspiration of 108 cancer survivors. The book gives the readers a rare insight into the courageous and heartfelt voyage of these patients, the initial helplessness and a despondent state of mind, how they recovered from the jolt they experienced on hearing the dreaded word cancer, picked up the pieces of their lives from scratch and gradually transformed into incredibly strong cancer survivors. The book is replete with the stories of several bravehearts who proved without doubt that cancer which is thought to be invincible, can be vanquished with sheer will power. Here is the gist of a few stories, which transformed from heart wrenching saga to a happy outcome. A young lady walks into my clinic with fear and despair and pleads, “Doctor, please cure my disease and make me live till my children’s education is done.” Not only her children’s education is done but her children are married and she is joyfully playing with her grandchildren! A 25-year-old man walks in and says, “Doctor uncle – I just started my job! I have so many aspirations to fulfil and have to take care of my parents. Please do something. I want to live! I do not want to die!”. He is happily living with his wife and children and also taking care of his parents. A young 14-year-old girl walks into the clinic along with her mother. “Doctor uncle – everyone in the family is crying! Am I going to die? Am I going to lose my leg? Is there no treatment to make me come out of this?” She has gone through the treatment and emerged victorious! Also, she has her legs intact. She is now pursuing her Fashion designing dream! A 33-year-old lady diagnosed of breast cancer was unstoppably crying and says,” I thought of committing suicide yesterday doctor. I do not want to undergo this horrifying and torturing cancer treatment. Any way I am going to die.” Narrating his experiences and what went into compiling this book, Dr Vijay Anand Reddy said, “There are several such emotional touching and powerful stories seen and felt throughout my career. They start losing the battle before they actually begin to fight. I thought there should be some way to deal with this fear from cancer diagnosis, treatment and fear of not getting cured! When a doctor says to a patient that everything will be fine, it doesn’t appeal to the patient so much. When it comes from a patient who has gone through this journey successfully, it works wonders. It certainly has a significant impact on the newly diagnosed patient. Keeping this in mind I started talking to patients who come to my office even after they are cured for many years if they would agree to sharing their journey. Normally, the answer is often no! But most of my patients were kind and brave enough to share their stories. I also started a club called the Freedom from Cancer club where cured patients are made members. These members are already helping our patients on treatment on a regular basis. In conclusion Dr Vijay Anand Reddy added “What Cancer Cannot Do – It cannot cripple love, It cannot shatter hope, It cannot corrode faith, It cannot silence courage, It cannot invade the soul, It cannot steal eternal life, It cannot conquer the spirit.”

Professor Darius F. Mizra, Head of Hepatobiliary and Liver Transplant, Apollo Hospitals and Professor of Hepatobiliary and Transplant surgery, University of Birmingham, UK has got 25 years of extensive experience in the field. Leading the Liver team at Apollo Hospitals, Nashik he strives to a form world class Hepatobiliary and Transplant facility for both adult and children suffering from liver and pancreatic diseases in Maharashtra. He said “The incidence of liver diseases is on the rise and awareness needs to be created regarding the recent medical and surgical options which are available. Most of the times, it is asymptomatic and when the patients start to see the symptoms, it is at an advanced stage, which may require a liver transplantation or liver surgery. Early diagnosis of the disease helps in better medical outcomes.” Dr. Anuj Tiwari, COO, Apollo Hospitals, Nashik said “NABH accredited Apollo Hospitals, Nashik is now among the few hospitals including Apollo Hospitals at Navi Mumbai and Pune in the state of Maharashtra, which has received the acknowledgement to perform liver transplant surgery. We have our established liver clinic treating patients at Nashik and its peripheral areas where the incidence of people suffering from liver disorder is increasing day by day. According to the WHO 2014 data, nearly 2.44% of total deaths in India is caused by liver diseases.”  

The revolutionary hair re-growth formula, QR 678 has shown extraordinary hair re-growth results in male & female pattern baldness. QR 678 growth factor formulation injection therapy is an advanced hair growth and anti-hair loss treatment which uses a mixture of several growth factors to facilitate hair growth and prevent hair loss. The technology recently bagged the prestigious hair re-growth patent from United States Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO), for its physician inventors Dr. Debraj Shome & Dr. Rinky Kapoor. QR 678, which is set to be made commercially available in Tardeo and Chembur centers of Apollo Spectra Hospitals, Mumbai, has already picked up great attention. Speaking about the latest invention, Dr Debraj Shome, Apollo Spectra Hospitals said, “Our studies indicate 30 percent of men under 30 and 80 percent of men under 80 will witness balding. However, these statistics become worse with stressful lifestyles, hormones and antibiotics in food and a variety of other pollutants that are damaging people’s bodies and their hair. Till date, hair transplant was thought to be the only solution but that itself is painful, needs to be repeated and sometimes may not work as well as one would expect. The QR 678 injection therapy is non-surgical, much cheaper and has shown promising results, even in chemotherapy induced hair fall, in cancer patients”. Results from preliminary studies indicated 80 percent hair growth in about 6 months for more than 90 percent people who tried this injection therapy. In some cases, results were even better than hair restoration surgery. The QR 678 treatment is aimed at patients with male pattern baldness, female pattern baldness and baldness caused due to diseases or treatment modules. It involves administration of growth factor solution in the form of 1ml injections into the scalp skin of the patient via mesotherapy, which delivers the growth factor to the targeted tissue layers. This is a 30 second procedure with injections being administered in areas of hair loss and alopecia. The procedure does not involve any anesthesia. Sessions are repeated every 4 weeks, for 8 to 10 sittings. QR 678 treatment, being completely natural costs 1/10 of what an actual hair transplant costs. It can revitalize the scalp through naturally derived molecules that signal one’s cells to reverse time and grow hair. The latest innovation even bypasses the existing and broader process of Platelet Rich Plasma therapy (PRP) and stem cells hair treatment, promoting direct growth factor stimulation of hair growth through a more advanced, much more selective & highly effective approach.

The initiative addressed more than 60 police officials from Navi Mumbai to generate awareness on the medico-legal and compliance procedures that precede a transplant. The aim of the workshop was to make organ donation seamless and painless for all branches of police and donor families, allowing them to realize the noble act of organ donation. As a part of this initiative, Apollo Hospitals, Navi Mumbai provided a platform for organised training sessions on organ donation, transplantation and the medical and compliance processes involved with this. The programme was attended by several dignitaries like Shri Hemant Nagrale, Commissioner of Police, Navi Mumbai; Dr. Gauri Rathod, Asst. Director, Directorate of Health Services; Dr. Sujata Patwardhan, Consultant Renal Surgeon, KEM Hospital and currently representing ROTTO, SOTTO; Dr. S.K. Mathur, Consultant Surgeon and Secretary of ZTCC; Dr. Narendra Trivedi, CEO-Apollo Hospitals, Navi Mumbai; and Prof. Dr Darius F Mirza, Head, HPB and Multi-Organ Transplant Surgeon at Apollo Hospitals, and Professor of HPB and Transplant Surgery, University of Birmingham UK. Shri Hemant Nagrale, Commissioner of Police, Navi Mumbai, said, “There is a need to have more awareness and clarity in communication in the organ donation pathway. Some of the challenges facing organ transplantation in our country are the low availability of cadaver donor organs. With an ever-increasing spectrum of diseases, organ failures and accidents, the need for voluntary organ donation is high. This programme aims to bring about a positive change to the current transplant scenario by inspiring people to pledge for organ donation after death and bridge the huge gap between need and availability of organs. It is important for the hospitals to motivate people to donate organs as well as to understand the value of organ donation in the life of an individual.” Prof. Dr Darius F Mirza, Head, HPB and Multi-Organ Transplant Surgeon at Apollo Hospitals, and Professor of HPB and Transplant Surgery, University of Birmingham UK said, “Over 300,000 people die in our country due to lack of organ availability. Organ transplantation is an established lifesaving medical treatment for end-stage disease with most patients making a full recovery. Cadaveric organ donation is an essential part of organ transplantation. Awareness about brain death and the generous act of organ donation amongst doctors, hospital administrators, and authorities including the police forces, media and the general public are required for us to be able to achieve organ transplantation in numbers large enough to help most patients.” “Today’s programme aims to create awareness on organ donation among all the various bodies who are essential in facilitating organ donation. It is imperative for all of us to know the medico-legal framework that our country has laid down around organ donation-how it works and what are the responsibilities that each party is required to discharge. We are thankful to Shri. Hemant Nagrale, Commissioner of Police, Navi Mumbai and his officers and the ZTCC for facilitating this workshop so speedily. We believe we can also help smaller hospitals with their intensive care units in their desire to become organ retrieval centres. This will allow the noble act of organ donation to be carried out as per the donor family’s wishes at the donor hospital without the need to consider transfer of the donor to a recognized hospital”, said Dr. Narendra Trivedi, CEO-Apollo Hospitals, Navi Mumbai.  

Apollo Hospitals Group announced its exclusive representation in GCC states through its arm, Apollo Middle East consultancy (FZC), registered through Sharjah Free zone. This was announced during a seminar organized by Medetarian Conferences Organizing (MCO) & Apollo Hospitals Group on 28th of July 2017 held at Abu Dhabi. The collaboration will have awareness programs, online second medical opinion service and a SCOLIOSIS awareness helpline number provided by HSMC Clinic (Clinic partner of MCO) in association with Apollo’s Institute of Spine Surgery. Speaking at the occasion, Dr Abu El Khair, CEO of MCO & HSMC Clinic said “We are privileged to have Afro-Asia’s largest healthcare provider with us and this is the first of its kind initiative in the region.. In today’s world of ever increasing disease burden, such collaboration will help and this way we intend to connect the medical fraternity of UAE & India. Dr K Hariprasad, Group President-Hospital Division led the Apollo delegation. Speaking at the event, he stated “At Apollo, we believe that healthcare is a shared responsibility and we have been privileged to offer the best of healthcare at affordable prices to the people of this region for over 3 decades. We are delighted to have this health alliance and we would enhance our reach through the Apollo Middle East Consultancy in UAE.” The event was followed by a medical seminar on robotics in spine surgery, common intracranial disorders and recent advances in neurosurgery, infections in arthroplasty treatment, current management in pediatric bone disorders and management of pediatric cerebral palsy. The Apollo Delegation had Chief Spine Surgeon, Dr. Sajan K Hegde, Senior Consultant Orthopedic Surgeon, Dr. KJ Reddy, Senior Consultant Pediatric Orthopedic Surgeon, Dr. R Sankar and Senior. Consultant Neurosurgeon, Dr. Rahul Lath, Mr. Jithu Jose, Business Head-Middle East & Ms. Shubhra Singhal, Partner – Apollo Middle East Consultancy.  

In India, dengue has emerged as one of the biggest threats to public health. Last year, more than 1 lakh dengue cases were reported in India with 245 unfortunate dengue deaths. Dengue is an acute viral disease, which is caused by a mosquito bite. It is growing rapidly and continues to take lives of innocent people unabatedly because dengue has no cure and has to be treated symptomatically. While people are aware of the cause of dengue, there is a lack of awareness on how dengue can be cured. Absence of a cure, coupled with lack of awareness leads to a lot of anxiety, driving patients to get admitted the moment they are diagnosed positive. The dengue virus causes a sharp drop in the platelet count of the patient’s blood, triggering internal bleeding and other complications. In rare cases, when the platelet count drops below 20,000/cu.mm, the patient may require an urgent transfusion of platelets. A recent survey carried out by Godrej HIT & Research Now states that 94% of citizens are unaware about the critical level of platelet count below which platelet transfusion is required. In such a situation, ready availability of a platelet donor becomes critical, as unlike blood, platelets cannot be stored for more than 5 days. However, the Godrej HIT Research Now report also informed that 80% of the citizens are not aware of this important fact. Understanding the gravity of the situation, Godrej HIT and Apollo Hospitals has taken this bold initiative to educate citizens and build India’s first online nation-wide platelet donor community. As part of the initiative, Apollo Hospitals will be providing platelets to critical dengue patients and will manage the 24×7 helpline. Godrej HIT & Apollo Hospitals have been leading multiple community outreach programs. Over the last many years both have been educating masses about mosquito borne diseases and its preventive measures. On the occasion, Ms. Sangita Reddy, Joint Managing Director, Apollo Hospitals Group said, “Vector borne diseases like dengue are emerging as a threat to public health in India. To address this issue, we at Apollo Hospitals, have tied-up with Godrej HIT to build a platelet donor community. Through this initiative, we are trying to bridge the disparity in awareness and provide ready resources to manage diseases like dengue. Apollo Hospitals has set-up and will manage a 24×7 helpline for patients suffering from dengue. The helpline is available for donors willing to donate their platelets and for donors looking to receive platelets for their treatment. This initiative is aimed towards building a donor community that can help fellow citizens who fall victim to dengue. With Apollo’s wide reach, our clinical outcomes and the expertise our doctors we are confident that we will help significantly address the challenge posed by dengue and related fevers.” Sunil Kataria, Business Head-India and SAARC, Godrej Consumer Products Limited (GCPL) said “Dengue has emerged as a serious threat to public health in India. While people are aware that mosquito bites causes dengue, they are unaware of the curative measures, especially about platelets. Our Godrej HIT-Research Now research reveals that 90% citizens are aware that platelets are blood components but a startling 66% believe that platelets are a cure for dengue and 80% believe that platelets can be stored like blood, both of which are factually incorrect! This lack of awareness leads to lot of anxiety among citizens. Hence Godrej HIT has partnered with Apollo Hospitals to build India’s first online nation-wide platelet donor community for dengue patients”. He further added “Through this initiative we urge citizens to register as a platelet donor on www.godrejhit.com/trackthebite or on Hit Track the Bite app and help save lives of critical dengue patients. The registration response has been overwhelming and in less than 2 weeks, more than 20,000 citizens have registered as platelet donors. Dengue patients can call on a city-specific 24×7 platelet helpline number across 5 key metros to get platelets. For Delhi NCR, the platelet helpline number is 011-26825565.” Godrej HIT’s association with Apollo Hospitals is a multi-channel awareness program. This initiative will drive citizen awareness in 5 key metros to start with.