Institution building : the healthcare triad paradigm

The three variables (in my view) that form the basis of an effective healthcare system , are:

-          Leadership vision and strategical capacity

-          Financial  planning and capability

-          A skilled, competent and engaged workforce

Institutes that realize this have gone on to build excellent healthcare systems. And those that fail to build this triad, eventually face extinction due to competition.

This is true of healthcare as of any other industry. What perhaps makes healthcare distinctive is its dependence on the physician as an authority, and as a magnet for marketing (witness  a well known hospital in Gurgaon established in 2010 which has used this model successfully).

An institution without visionary and strategic leadership is bound to fail like a ship without a rudder in troubled waters. There are institutions that have thrived on chaotic and entropic growth, but the long-term sustainability needs to be seen.

Financials are, of course, the heart of the matter. Without a focus on sound financials, everything is going to fail. Cost-cutting is not the solution, cost optimization is. A well known hospital chain based in Bangalore has proved that it is possible to provide mass healthcare while maintaining sound financials.

Lastly, a skilled workforce (across all categories) is vital. This is as true of highly –skilled physicians as of housekeeping staff or security staff, much lower down the rung. The most common complaints in some hospitals are often not of a medical nature, but something as seemingly secondary, but actually vital, as the behaviour of security staff and the cleanliness of the hospital. Engaging this workforce is also essential, because without internal customer satisfaction, external customers, namely patients, are never going to be happy.

I feel it is the mix of these three variables which makes a healthcare institution successful and prosperous.

Any comments would be welcome.