Jawaharlal Nehru Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research (JIPMER), which is celebrating its golden jubilee, could be a role model for universal health care as envisaged by Union Health Ministry under its proposed Universal Health Assurance (UHA) Programme.
JIPMER, an autonomous government institution, provides a whopping 99.5 per cent of treatment and other medical care free of cost to patients and could be a role model for universal health care, according to JIPMER director T S Ravikumar.
The free care includes not only medicines and tests provided to over 6,126 out-patients turning up at the hospital every day on an average but also expensive cancer treatment administered at its specialised unit for cancer patients.
"Our main purpose is to serve the poor. It is a difficult job but it's a satisfying job as well," Ravikumar told reporters while speaking about the core strengths of his institute ahead of its golden jubilee celebrations which is to be held later this month in which President Pranab Mukherjee is expected to participate.
JIPMER, an institute of national importance like AIIMS in Delhi and PGIMER in Chandigarh, is also among very few places of its stature which offers courses in Yoga as part of its medical care to patients depending on their needs.
Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan is a keen supporter of promoting Yoga as part of medical care across the country and authorities here believe that they can offer some lessons in incorporating the ancient system in modern medical science.
Asked how the institute has found it economically viable to provide medical care free to virtually everybody, Ravikumar said purchasing only generic medicines with strict quality control was one big reason behind it.
What JIPMER provides free would have cost anywhere between Rs 400-500 cr in a general hospital, he said. The cost of free medicine given to patients alone was about Rs 27 crore.
Unlike other hospitals of its like, JIPMER does not accept only referral patients as, the director claims, it does not have the "culture of turning patients away". "It's a walk-in place and over one-third of our patients are basically meant for primary care."
It is its "expertise" in universal health care values which prompted it to launch JIPMER International School of Public Health in collaboration with international institutes.
The school will offer models for sustainable and frugal health care.
