Abstract
This research paper attempts to collate literature from various sources, in an attempt to answer three pertinent questions related to healthcare in India. Firstly, what is it meant by ‘private sector’ in healthcare delivery system of India, secondly how has the private sector evolved over the decades and what has been the role of the government in propelling the growth. Finally, the paper tries to highlight some of the factors that have promoted the growth of private sector in India with specific reference to quality of medical care. The paper explicitly indicates that the deficiencies in the public health delivery system of India, was the key to growth of private infrastructure in healthcare. The shift of hospital industry for ‘welfare orientation’ to ‘business orientation’ was marked by the advent of corporate hospitals, supported by various policy level initiatives made by the government. Today, there are over 20 international healthcare brands in India with several corporate hospitals. However, a large section of the ‘private healthcare delivery segment’ is scattered and quality of medical care continues to remain a matter of concern. This paper tracks the various government initiatives to promote private investment in healthcare and attempts to explore the reasons for preference of the private sector. Surprisingly, in contrast to contemporary belief, quality of medical care doesn’t seem to be the leading cause for preference of the private sector. Except for a few select corporate and trust hospitals, quality of medical care in private sector seems to be poor and at times compromised.
Highlights
Private Sector in Indian Healthcare Delivery System In Economics, private sector represents a part of the economy, which is operated by an individual or a group with the underlying objective of maximizing profits
The role of private sector has been critical in the provision of medical care services
Other factors which have aided the Private sector in dominating the Indian healthcare delivery market include changing consumer perception, increasing awareness about quality of medical care, greater penetration of insurance, increased purchasing power, changing demographic structure, etc
Summary
In Economics, private sector represents a part of the economy, which is operated by an individual or a group with the underlying objective of maximizing profits. Though the incorporation of an organization plays a critical role in determining the philosophy and objectives of the organization, it doesn’t take into account certain considerations of professional management or orientation towards generating surplus This kind of segregation undermines the importance of maximizing returns for not-for-profit organizations, for whom generating surplus plays a crucial role in ensuring sustainability and funds for infrastructural up gradations to provide superior quality of medical care services and cater to the need of the poor and underprivileged, by providing specialized services, at affordable cost. It is for this reason, that several research studies conducted in this domain have always considered trust and charitable institutions are a part of the ‘private sector’. Several other corporate hospitals were established across India including Escort Group, Wocharkdt Group of Hospitals and Fortis Healthcare (ILO, 2009)
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