Dr Vivek Desai, who has been a consultant for some of the biggest hospital projects in Nagpur for last 10 years has a vision for the city as central India’s biggest healthcare hub.
A medical doctor with a post-graduation in hospital management and business management, Dr Desai has worked as an adviser to the World Bank, USAID, ministry of health and other organizations.
According to him, Nagpur has seen a seachange in the last 10 years and there are big and innovative projects in the pipeline.
After Covid-19, hospitality giants are shifting their focus on hospitals, he said.
Q.
How has been your experience with Nagpur as adviser to hospitals? A.
We started 10 years ago in Nagpur with Alexis Hospital as our first project.
At that time, travelling to Mumbai, Hyderabad or Chennai for advanced treatment was a common thing for Nagpurians.
Now, things have completely changed.
You get almost every advanced treatment in Nagpur.
The city has emerged as the medical hub of central India.
In last decade, I worked for big projects like the National Cancer Institute, Kingsway Hospital and Viveka Hospital.
We have several big associations in future.
Q.
You mean more big hospitals are coming to Nagpur? A.
Of course.
One of them is going to be a big charity hospital.
Another is being owned by a big medical family in Nagpur.
The city is developing rapidly and our survey says it needs such projects.
Many more projects are coming up in Nagpur to cater to entire central India.
Q.
Is it real that hotels will be converted into hospitals? A.
Very much possible in near future.
Post Covid, the hospitality industry has suffered a lot.
I have several enquiries from hospitality giants in Nagpur who have shown interest in converting their hotels to hospitals.
It is a pan India trend.
Even a concept like medical mall, where one floor will cater one speciality will be a reality soon in many big cities.
Nagpur may also get one such medical mall.
Q.
What are the sectors on which Nagpur needs to focus in future? A.
Neurology, neurosurgery, and nephrology are the sectors where the city still needs a bigger set-up.
Concept of a full-fledged children’s hospital is yet to gain corporate support in Nagpur.
The city needs to work on organ transplant sector too.
It will depend on how hospitals and doctors shift their bases to city in the next few years.
Q.
Your observations and suggestions to people/patients? A.
During pandemic, everyone has realized importance of having good healthcare.
More people are now considering to spend a good amount on health insurance.
This will enable them to avail services in private hospitals with modern facilities.
I must say, you need a sustainable health insurance policy.
Start preparing for it as Nagpur is changing.