THE EXCHANGE | Newsletter February 2021

COVID Warriors Get the Shot

 As part of the Government’s initiative to vaccinate frontline healthcare workers on priority, COVID vaccination drive was kicked off in Medanta on January 16, 2021.

 Leading by example, first to get vaccinated,Dr. Naresh Trehan, Chairman & Managing Director, Medanta said,

“COVID-19 has been the biggest public healthcare challenge of our times. Putting their lives at risk, healthcare workers have been at the centerstage leading the war against the pandemic. We are extremely grateful to the government for prioritizing the vaccination of healthcare workers. Medanta will continue to work with the government to overcome this unprecedented and challenging pandemic situation.”

Charting the Unchartered

Medanta’s COVID Journey So Far

Medanta has been successfully treating COVID patients, innovating and re-inventing to respond to the unprecedented, unforeseen healthcare challenge. Outlining our journey as we braved the virus, here’s how the pandemic became a catalyst to transformation and innovation at Medanta.

In March 2020, when 14 patients, over 65 years of age were admitted to Medanta after testing positive for COVID, we knew we had set out on a long journey with no precedence.

While the first set of foreign patients were treated and discharged successfully, we were already adding infrastructure, skill and scale to respond to the disease which had assumed pandemic levels by then.

Cresting Scale

Medanta has been working in synergy with the Government to fight the pandemic and ensure that all citizens get access to treatment.

Collaborating with other private healthcare providers, we set up a dedicated COVID treatment facility adding 150 beds, upgrading the infrastructure in one of Gurgaon’s private hospitals. Medanta doctors and nurses along with staff of other private hospitals cared for hundreds of COVID patients in this facility during the early days of the pandemic. As the situation escalated, we created scale by adding COVID-dedicated ICUs and ward beds within Medanta. Additionally, we partnered with hotels to create capacity for mild and moderate cases to preserve hospital beds for very sick patients.

While we continually adapted and evolved to treat patients amidst the challenging environment, Medanta ensured that non-COVID patients don’t suffer because of lack of treatment. Reinforcing our stringent, internationally benchmarked infection control protocols, we maintained continuum of care for all non-COVID patients in the most protected and safest environment. Our full spectrum of healthcare services including OPD consultations, emergency, elective surgeries and chronic care were accessible 24X7 in a COVID-safe environment.

Enhancing Access Medanta rapidly and effectively asserted itself in response to the pandemic. We experimented a lot with digital technologies to deliver superior patient care amidst the crises. One such clear priority area was telemedicine. Helping us deliver remote, safe healthcare, we scaled up our eClinic platform through which our doctors conducted eleven times more virtual patient consultations as compared to the pre-pandemic times. This made the system more accessible and transparent, and ensured inclusivity and equality of access.

Treatment for mild to moderate COVID cases was also delivered through telemedicine. A dedicated team of doctors was engaged to virtually consult COVID patients as part of our COVID homecare program. Enrolled patients were remotely monitored by dedicated healthcare managers who kept them connected to their doctors and ensured a smooth patient journey. The program eased the pressure admission could put on a stretched healthcare system.

Telemedicine also changed the way chronic care got delivered at a time when people were hesitant of stepping out of their homes. Diabetes patients, for instance, who needed regular dose adjustments had to no more travel to the hospital physically to consult their doctor. They could easily do so from the safe confines of their home through a simple mobile device. This helped maintained continuum of care. Applying these learnings, we recently launched a structured, remote diabetes care program for chronic diabetes management.

Enhancing access to healthcare within our own local community, Medanta pioneered the set-up of eClinic and nursing stations in residential communities in Gurugram where emergency first responders are available and doctors can be consulted remotely as well as in person. Eight such eClinics are now operational with more planned in the near future.

Supporting the patient journey further, Medanta also started home-delivering medicines and doing home sample collection as well as home preventive health check for patients in the National Capital Region.

Simplifying our appointment booking process further, we are now booking consultations for all our doctors through WhatsApp.

Driving Innovation  Partnering with the government, private health care providers and start-ups, Medanta accelerated digital transformation of the healthcare system in India. We worked closely with start-ups and incubators to improve the diagnosis of COVID and conducted clinical trials to decode the efficacy of therapy. We also drove innovation as we worked with our partners on app based predictors of COVID, besides antiviral disinfectants and coating.

Medanta was also one of the project team members of Swasth, the telemedicine mobile app for COVID which aggregated pharmacies, doctors, hospitals, diagnostic labs and homecare providers on a common platform.

Recently, Medanta was judged as the best private hospital in India by Newsweek for the world-class, affordable healthcare delivered over the last decade.The India Today Group acknowledgedMedanta as the Best private hospital combating COVID-19. Medgate Today honored our efforts by acknowledging us as a leading Atmanirbhar Hospital.

COVID has been a dynamic and rapidly evolving situation that demanded us to think laterally and operate cross functionally. With stronger resolve and more experience, Medanta has stayed committed to addressing this challenge collectively with the government and civic authorities. Medanta stands true to its credo: ‘Dedicated to Life’.