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HomeApollo EventsNewsChairman’s Speech at the 28th Annual General Meeting, 26th August 2009

Chairman’s Speech at the 28th Annual General Meeting, 26th August 2009

Our Chairman Dr. Prathap C Reddy addressed the shareholdres at the 28th Annual General Meeting held on the 26th of August, 2009 and presented the Annual Report of Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Limited for the Financial Year ended 31st March, 2009.

 

Apollo Chairman Photo

Dear Shareholder members of the Apollo family,

Good Morning.
On behalf of the Board of Directors, I have great pleasure in welcoming you to the Annual General Meeting and presenting to you the Annual Report of your Company for the financial year 2008-09.

The Directors’ Report and the financial statements of your Company for the period ended 31st March 2009 have already been provided to all shareholders. With your consent, I take them as read.

I do proceed, beginning with the introduction of the Board Members on the dais and will then detail the financial performance.

 

1. Financial Performance

Standalone Performance
It gives me great pride to inform you that:-

  • Turnover has gone up from Rs. 1152 crores to Rs. 1480 crores, representing a healthy growth of 29%.
  • Net profit (before extraordinary item) has gone up to Rs.122 crores from Rs.102 crores, representing a growth of 20%.
  • Net profit (after extraordinary item) has gone up from Rs.102 crores to Rs.118 crores, representing a growth of 16%.
  • The EPS increased from Rs 18.61 to Rs 19.80, representing a growth of 6%.

Particulars

Year Ended

 

 

(%)

31st March 2009

31st March 2008

 

Turnover (Rs. in crores)

1480

1152

29%

Net Profit (before extraordinary item)

(Rs. in crores)

122

102

 

20%

Net Profit (after extraordinary item)

(Rs. in crores)

118

102

16%

EPS (Rs.)

19.80

18.61

6%


Group Performance

  • The Group’s total turnover has gone up from Rs 1242 crores to Rs.1635 crores, representing a growth of over 32%.
  • Net profit has gone up from Rs.77 crores to Rs.103 crores, representing a growth of 33%.
  • EPS increased from Rs.14.10 to Rs.17.63 representing a growth of 25%.

Particulars

Year Ended

 

(%)

31st March 2009

31st March 2008

   

Income (Rs. in crores)

1635

1242

32%

Net Profit (Rs. in crores)

103

77

33%

EPS (Rs.)

17.63

14.10

25%


Dividend – 65% highest ever declared till now.

I am happy to announce that considering the financial performance, your directors have recommended a dividend of 65% (Rs. 6.50 per share), a life time high for your company when the rest of the world is reeling under a recession reflecting the inherent strength of the business of the company and the confidence of the Management of the Company.

It is our constant endeavour to continuously add value to your investment and justify the trust and confidence all of you have reposed in the management.

 

State of the Indian Economy and Healthcare Scenario

While there has been a slowdown in the economy for the past 12 months due to various reasons, including the global financial crisis and tighter money supply, economists believe that the initial conditions for a domestic demand-led recovery are now in place. Analysts have raised FY10 (year starting April 2009) GDP forecast to between 6.3% – 7% y-o-y from 5.2-5.6% and expect growth of 7.5% in FY11.

India presents a unique opportunity for healthcare providers, policy makers and service providers alike. With 16% of the world population and 21% of total global diseases, Indian healthcare is not only grossly under-staffed, with a doctor to thousand population ratio of 0.5 as against 1.5 of comparable emerging economies, but also faces ever widening gaps in physical infrastructure.

We have challenges in both provision and access.

By the year 2012, the healthcare industry in India is expected to reach over US$ 75 billion. Rising income levels are pushing for better facilities in the country. According to the Technopak Advisors report, India needs to add 3.1 million beds by 2018 to the existing 1.1 million, to meet this target; our country needs to invest US$ 50 billion every year, for the next 10 years.

In the previous year your company, Apollo Hospitals added a 1000- beds and we plan to add another 1000 more this year as well

At Apollo, we are very concerned about these growing demands, we are constantly planning and implementing measures that will take care of the health of tomorrow’s India. We are focusing our efforts and investing our resources towards educating people on the importance of awareness, prevention and early detection. We believe that this is the best and the only enduring way to build a healthy India of tomorrow.

 

3. Vision Ahead

A. Apollo Reach Hospitals

We have embarked upon a new concept for taking healthcare delivery to semi-urban and rural areas of all the states in India, under the new brand name “Apollo Reach Hospitals” for serving the increasingly health conscious populace. Hospitals under this new brand are proposed to have a capacity of 100-200 beds focusing on critical care and with capability to perform cardiac surgeries as well.

Our Honorable Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh on 5th Sep’08, inaugurated the concept. The first such hospital has commenced at Karimnagar, Andhra Pradesh soon after launch, and is exceeding the expectations of the local community. We are planning to establish about 100 such hospitals in the next 10-15 years, in a phased manner. We have already three hospitals in Kakinada, Madurai and Karur.

We have tied up with International Finance Corporation, Washington, the private funding arm of the World Bank, to fund Apollo Reach Hospitals and other expansion programs of the company.

Currently, planning is in progress for Apollo Reach Hospitals at Karaikudi, Nashik Tiruchirapalli, Nellore, and Chennai in Ayanambakkam (outskirts of Chennai Metropolitan Area). The projects are awaiting statutory approvals for commencement of construction. These hospitals will become functional within the next 12-18 months.

Apollo Reach Hospitals are being designed to incorporate green building concepts. These hospitals will follow Apollo standard operating protocols, thereby be fully functional from day one. We are also planning to provide effective and efficient hospital information systems combined with advanced digital technologies such as PACS, Tele radiology, Appointment of Scheduler, Claims Xchange, Clinic Connect, Smart Card Related services, Digitization/Storage/Managing Patient health records or medical records.

The hospitals will create employment opportunities for the local educated and skilled youth in various disciplines. In addition, as part of Apollo Reach Hospital projects, we are planning to establish nursing and paramedical educational institutions in nearby locations to cater to the demands of the hospitals.

 

B. New Projects

We are in the process of implementing new projects at Bhubaneswar, Vizag, Mumbai and many other places. A project management agreement has been signed with Ashok Birla Apollo Hospital Enterprise Limited for setting up a 225-bed tertiary care hospital at Thane.

To enhance patient comfort, a fully automatic Multi Level Car Parking (MLCP) facility is under implementation near Apollo Main Hospital, Chennai.

Another Joint Venture has been formed with Lavasa Corporation Limited to establish a healthcare city at Lavasa, a hill station near Pune.

During the past year, we saw increased activity in executing and managing international projects despite the global economic slowdown. Some key projects are also being handled in Vienna, the Middle East, Africa and Asia.

Unique Ids for treating patients

Apollo Hospitals are poised to setting another landmark, as it will be the first to use the government’s Unique Identification card to maintain medical records of patients.

 

C. Institutes of Excellence

Apollo Hospitals Group is amongst the top five hospital groups in the world. With 7 JCI accredited hospitals in the group, your company has emerged as a trusted name for patients from across the world.

Your company is driven by the single thrust to provide the best standards in patient care through human resources, infrastructure and technology. Offering tertiary and quaternary care across all hospitals, the group is focused more on five pivotal centres of excellence namely; Cardiothoracic surgery and Cardiology, Oncology, Neurosciences, Critical Care and Minimally Invasive Orthopaedics.

The commitment of the cardiologists and cardiothoracic surgeons to the prevention and treatment of heart disease has led to the achievement of world class benchmarks with regard to the outcomes and a vastly improved quality of life for the thousands of cardiac patients who visit Apollo Hospitals every year. Leading the cardiac revolution in India, close to 90,000 cardiac surgeries have been performed at Apollo Hospitals. Apollo Hospital Chennai achieved a unique milestone of having completed 10,000 cardiac surgeries using the beating heart technique. The cardiac teams also were the first to perform the bloodless and awake cardiac surgery in India.

The Apollo Heart Check and Advanced Heart Check including a cardiac scan on the 320 Slice CT is huge advantage that we offer towards prevention of heart disease.

Our outstanding team of Orthopaedic clinicians have pioneered numerous replacement surgical procedures in the country. Today they are at the forefront of minimally invasive surgical systems including the most current arthroscopic and reconstructive techniques. They are assisted with robotically assisted technology for advanced orthopaedic and joint replacement surgery.

The Apollo Institutes of Neurosciences are equipped with facilities at par with the best in the world to cover the entire range of neurological diseases. Fully geared to treat patients within the golden hour, the untiring efforts and dedication of the team have prevented many from ending up as paraplegics for life!

The Critical Care Units at Apollo Hospitals have the unique expertise and ability to interpret important therapeutic information and they have access to sophisticated equipment to provide quality care round the clock. Tie-ups with neighbourhood nursing homes and small hospitals and telemedicine connectivity have helped reach our expertise for many in desperate need of urgent attention.

Apollo Hospitals has the unique advantage of offering 360-degree cancer care with a coordinated multi-disciplinary approach for the treatment of our patients. Our goal is to make all types of cancer curable!

The Transplant Centre at been established with a view to provide the very best in tertiary level services. Apollo Hospitals has the largest liver transplant program in India. Apollo Hospitals Chennai has performed the largest number of cadaver Liver Transplants in a single year as compared to any centre in the country.

 

D. Upgradation/Absorption of New Technology

Over the years, your company has brought into the country the best that the world has to offer in terms of technology. In its continuous endeavour to serve the patients better and to bring healthcare of international standards within the reach of every individual, your company has introduced the latest technology in its hospitals.

Cyber Knife System: Cyber Knife System is the only robotic frame free radio surgery system for treatment of tumors in any part of the body with sub-millimeter accuracy and precision.

Patient convenience was the paramount consideration in endorsing this system.

It has been installed in February 2009 and is doing very well. So far over a 100 patients from India and across the world have benefited from Asia Pacific’s most advanced CyberKnife installed at Apollo Speciality Cancer Hospital.

Novalis Radio Surgery System: Novalis Radio Surgery system, the first of its kind in India, is one of the most powerful and versatile platforms for non-invasive, image-guided radiosurgery.

It is planned in the Apollo Speciality Hospitals, Hyderabad.

320 Slice CT Scanner: India’s first 320 Slice CT Scanner, the world’s most advanced technology in diagnostic imaging.


4. Awards and Accolades

  • Apollo Hospitals featured among the top 5 in India’s most caring hospitals survey done by India Today.
  • Apollo Hospitals, Chennai; Apollo Hospitals, Hyderabad and Indraprastha Apollo Hospital, Delhi were re-accredited by Joint Commission International (JCI), USA in 2009.
  • Apollo Hospitals, Bengaluru and Apollo Gleneagles Hospital, Kolkata were accredited by Joint Commission International (JCI), USA in 2009.
  • Apollo Hospitals, Greams Road, Chennai was re-accredited by NABL (National Accreditation Board for Testing and Clinical Laboratories)
  • Apollo Hospitals, Madurai was granted NABH (National Accreditation Board for Hospitals and Healthcare Providers) accreditation.
  • Apollo Gleneagles Hospital Limited was rated “Best Hospital” in the Eastern Region of India by “The Week” magazine survey 2008.
  • Apollo Hospitals Group was awarded the “Reader’s Digest Trusted Brand” for the year 2009 in the Hospital Services category.
  • Dr. T. P. R. Bharadwaj, Senior Consultant was awarded the Dr. B. C. Roy Award for the year 2008. (Applause)

5. Clinical Governance

Clinical Governance at Apollo Hospitals refers to the highest quality of care in a safe environment for patients, their attendants as well as for the staff. It enables that all the efforts of our hospitals are focused and co-ordinated to deliver high and continuously improving state of care.

Clinical Governance in the present context assumes greater importance in view of the more informed patients whose expectations are constantly rising.

The ACE @ 25 (Apollo Clinical Excellence)

“ACE @ 25” is a clinical balanced scorecard focusing on clinical excellence, and incorporates parameters which are mission critical for the organization. This balanced score card focuses on providing evidence based quality care, a safe environment to our patients, and strengthening the functional efficiency of our hospitals.

It also gives us international benchmarks for each clinical or quality parameter measured, and helps us track performance by comparing and measuring against international standards.

 

6. New Initiatives

Inauguration of Apollo Bramwell Hospital in Mauritius

The Prime Minister of the Republic of Mauritius in Moka, Mauritius inaugurated Apollo Bramwell Hospital, a state of the art multi specialty hospital on the 19th of August 2009. This is a Joint Venture Agreement between AHEL and the British American Hospitals Enterprises Limited along with BAI Medical Centres Ltd., a subsidiary of British American Investment Company (Mauritius) Ltd., to open Apollo Bramwell Hospital in Mauritius. The Apollo Bramwell is a 200-bed setup with a scope to expand this to 350 beds. It will be targeting patients from Madagascar, Seychelles and African countries

Apollo Dialysis Clinics

Apollo Dialysis Clinics, India’s premier out-of-hospital dialysis clinic, provides high-end dialysis services and is designed to address specific issues that affect dialysis care in India today. Apollo Dialysis Clinics bring together the cumulative experience of Apollo Hospitals, which has been a pioneer in offering quality dialysis to its patients. For over 25 years, we have been the preferred hospital providing dialysis services at over 20 hospitals in India with close to 150 machines serving over 2,000 patients per year. We have one of the largest teams of nephrologists in India – with a cumulative experience of over 400 years in the fields of Clinical Nephrology, Dialysis and Transplantation.

Apollo Children’s Hospital

Apollo Hospitals Group has stepped into the area of providing exclusive quality pediatric care in the form of Apollo Children’s Hospital. The Apollo Children’s Hospital is a 100-bed facility situated in the vicinity of the flagship Apollo Hospitals on Greams Road, Chennai, and was inaugurated on 30th July 2009 by Oscar Award Winner, Shri. A. R.Rahman. The Apollo Children’s Hospital is one of the finest in the country, complete with an NICU (Neonatal intensive-care unit), Isolation ward, three operation theatres, general ward, cheerful private rooms and tasteful suites. It has some of the most advanced technology, and other cutting-edge equipment in cardiac and neuro diagnostics. With the best possible experience drawn from the state-of-the-art Apollo Centre of Excellence for Pediatrics, this hospital is bound to take pediatric care to the next frontier in India.

It has already achieved an average occupancy of 65% and it expected to break even within the next 12 months.

Pharmacies

During the year, 261 new pharmacies were added to the already existing 661 pharmacies, making Apollo the pioneers of India’s largest pharmacy chain with 922 pharmacies.

 

7. Harnessing technology to address the healthcare delivery gap in the country

Your company has embarked on an ambitious project that will redefine the healthcare delivery in India. The Health Hiway is a National Health Data Network, built on the Internet that will make patient health information available online to healthcare providers when and where they need it.

The Health Hiway would be a seamless health information superstructure. It will link 2,00,000 doctors to each other, to improve healthcare services, map changing disease patterns, alert the medical establishment about emerging health problems and enable doctors to make more informed decisions.

 

8. Corporate Social Responsibility

Touching lives is at the heart of the Apollo Hospitals mission. The Apollo Hospitals Group is committed to the well being of not just patients, but society as a whole. The ultimate aim is to provide quality healthcare to all those who need it.

This is why the hospital has developed a sound and highly transparent management model that takes the interests of our customers, shareholders, investors, business partners, employees, communities and government bodies into account to maintain the best in corporate governance, risk management, corporate ethics and compliance.

Towards this end, the Apollo Hospitals Group has started several initiatives. Initiatives like SACH, SAHI, CURE and DISHA aim to reach out and provide healthcare measures to the economically backward.

There are a few other initiatives that have been undertaken by Apollo Hospitals like the free medical camp service provided by the doctors from the group, in association with an NGO called Vishwas, which caters to the needs of special children. This event was organized in Sohna village in Haryana.

SACH

The SAVE A CHILD’S HEART programme was conceptualized by Apollo Hospitals with the objective of providing surgical treatment to economically deprived children with congenital and other forms of pediatric heart diseases.

SACH was established in 2003 at Hyderabad, and today SACH is the largest voluntary organization in Asia that provides care and treatment to underprivileged children suffering from pediatric heart diseases. This initiative has touched the lives of over 50,000 children so far.

The SACH programme commenced at Chennai in November 2006, and already, several complex surgeries have been performed, which transformed the lives of several children with heart ailments. More than 550 children have been screened and 225 surgeries have been completed successfully here so far, of which 113 surgeries were done during the Financial Year ended on 31st March 2009.

 

9. Corporate Governance

Your Company has complied with the guidelines on Corporate Governance. Corporate Governance is holding the balance between economic and social goals and between individual and community goals. The governance framework helps to encourage the efficient use of resources, and also requires accountability for the stewardship of those resources. The aim is to align, as nearly as possible, the interests of individuals, corporations and society. A report on Corporate Governance compliances has been made part of the Directors’ Report.

Apollo Way

Apollo Hospitals, Chennai, has partnered with an international consulting firm to co-create the “Best-in-Class Operation Model” that is called the “Apollo Way”. The “Apollo Way” will focus on patient centricity, excellence in quality and operational excellence.

Assurance

Twenty-five years ago when it all began, we had a specific goal – to make India the best healthcare destination in the world. Today, I am proud to see this goal visible. We have brought world-class medical facilities well within the easy reach of every Indian. Currently, there is no ailment that cannot be treated in our hospitals in India. In fact, people from other countries are coming to India to get treated at Apollo Hospitals. We have revolutionized the way Indians get medical attention. I have no doubt that we have outgrown several big names in the healthcare sector of the world in terms of technology, facilities and service. As we grow further and touch new horizons, our commitment to caring for every single patient’s needs finds renewed strength. And I am sure this will stand us in good stead in the years to come.

 

10. Towards touching a billion lives

As a group, Apollo Hospitals is fast approaching a tipping point that demands a shift in mindset. A healthier India and a healthier society require your company to influence change and take clinical excellence to the masses.

To realize the new vision, your company recognizes its role to spearhead this movement and be the positive catalyst to rewrite Indian healthcare, once again. To touch and nurture a billion hearts.

 

Acknowledgement

In conclusion, on behalf of the Board of Directors and on my own behalf, I extend sincere gratitude for the valuable guidance and support received from the Government of India and various State Governments.

I also acknowledge my deep and sincere thanks for the cooperation and assistance received from bankers, financial institutions and suppliers.

I would also like to place on record appreciation for the hard work, commitment and unstinting efforts put in by your company’s past and present employees at all levels.

My special thanks to all of you, and the large family of Apollo Shareholders, for their continued trust and confidence in us. I am sure, with the support of each one of you, as always, APOLLO would scale new and greater heights in future. Thank you.

 

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