APOLLO HOSPITALS
SCOUTING FOR PARTNERS IN WEST ASIA & AFRICA
Apollo Hospitals Group is scouting for
partnering with hospitals in West Asia and Africa to leverage
its brand equity in these highly potential medical tourism
markets. The company is looking at bagging operation and management
contracts from healthcare service providers in these markets,
aiming to have close to 1,000 international beds over the
next two years.
The strategy by default will also make
Apollo, India's first MNC healthcare service provider. Apollo
has just entered into a partnership to provide operational
management services to Lagos-based Hygeia Nigeria, one of
the largest healthcare groups in west Africa.
Hygeia Nigeria also owns the largest health
maintenance organisation (HMO) in Nigeria with over 200 hospitals
and clinics in the network. Apollo, a few days ago has also
bagged a project consultant job for a 100-bed multi-speciality
hospital in Ghana.
Projects in Kuwait, Yemen, Sudan, Ethiopia,
UAE, Bangladesh, Nepal and Malaysia are also at various stages
of association. Most projects are handled from the concept
to commissioning and eventually the management.
"Apollo's pan-Asian experience is
now much sought-after by the developing and the developed
countries. Low-cost high quality healthcare model that Apollo
has perfected are the virtues that the global healthcare organisations
are trying to replicate," Mr John Punnoose, CEO, operations
and management division of the company said
Apollo has even decided to take this business
model for the company's future growth plan in the domestic
market. In fact, this strategy of Apollo does not need any
financial capital investment but only transfer of human capital.
"Investing for own beds at today's
cost would be to the tune of Rs 30-45 lakh per bed. On the
other hand, the overheads and costs involved in managing hospitals
are relatively less with higher returns," Mr Punnoose
added. The hospital major is also looking at this business
model to increase its presence in cities where it has no presence
till now.
