New Delhi:
A new book by noted oncologist Dr B S Ajaikumar talks about cancer care, its social and business aspects and treatment in India and also narrates how he founded the HealthCare Global chain of care centres.
In Excellence Has No Borders , he also stresses that proper investment in improving the prosperity and education of underprivileged sections can bring about more focus on health, both at the individual and the society levels.
According to Ajaikumar, cancer is the same everywhere and everyone deserves the same kind of treatment, rich or poor, urban or rural.
He is of the opinion that when it comes to private healthcare, the role of the government is very important.
I find their policies short-sighted and lacking in vision. Part of the reason for this is that government advisers are all government doctors or bureaucrats, Ajaikumar argues.
It is high time we looked at domain experts to handle issues. They should be part of expert committees and come up with recommendations and policies that can be executed by the bureaucrats, he suggests.
As a fledgling doctor, what would you choose: practising medicine in rural India or going abroad in search of financial security? How would you face the people who depend on you if your wealth is wiped out in the stock market? How would you pursue a dream project, knowing the many challenges that lie ahead?
Ajaikumar seeks to answer these questions in an inspiring and fascinating narrative.
He details how he has made cancer treatment accessible to all and created the HCG chain of cancer hospitals across India.
In the book, published by Penguin Random House, he also tells about the challenges and successes on the path to becoming a doctorpreneur.
Ajaikumar says his journey has been an adventure in two worlds: India, where he was born, and the US, where he emigrated at the age of 22.
He was able to experience an advanced society in the US but his happiest moment, he says, has been returning to India for good and making a difference in healthcare by building the HCG chain of oncology care centres.
As I reflect and look to the future, I am amazed at how much more one can do in a country like India – a country where 1 per cent of the population controls 85 per cent of the wealth. The political system is rife with populist ideas, where we seem to celebrate poverty rather than prosperity, he writes.
He now wants to concentrate on education and economic well-being, along with healthcare.
Today, India needs activism and accountability. We have a rich heritage and are capable of being an advanced country, if we hold governments accountable and become responsible citizens of society, Ajaikumar argues.
