Maharashtra Govt Hospitals Set to Introduce Advanced Diagnostic & Treatment Services

The Maharashtra Public Health Department inked multiple agreements with private entities to establish and manage 22 MRI and 31 CT scan facilities.

Maharashtra’s district and sub-district hospitals are gearing up to introduce advanced diagnostic and treatment services such as MRI, CT scans, cardiac catheterization labs, and dialysis in the coming months.

This enhancement in health services in remote areas is set to be achieved through private partnerships.

Recently, the Maharashtra Public Health Department inked multiple agreements with private entities to establish and manage 22 MRI and 31 CT scan facilities.

Reportedly, Krshnaa Diagnostics and Unique Wellness have secured the contracts for MRI and CT scan services, while Kolkata’s Eskag Sanjeevani has bagged the deal to run dialysis services at 68 centers.

Maha’s Private-Public Partnership Model

Under this model, these firms will develop infrastructure, procure machines, hire manpower, and oversee operations within government hospital premises.

Further, these will provide treatment to patients free of cost however will incur expenses from the government for the services rendered.

A dozen cardiac cath labs, which are in the process of being set up by the state, are also likely to be handed over to private agencies for operations.

Talking about the development, Dheeraj Kumar, commissioner of state health services, said, “Patients in remote areas such as Gadchiroli, Nandurbar, Bhandara and Chandrapur will finally have access to life-saving diagnostics and treatments previously unavailable in the public system. Some of the plans have been in the making for years but have just materialised.”

According to Kumar, outsourcing was the only feasible choice as finding manpower and running services efficiently in semi-urban areas can be challenging for the government.

Reports indicate that the state has signed 10-year MOUs with these companies, considering the significant investment needed for facility creation.

Moreover, private players will bill the government at subsidized Central Government Health Scheme (CGHS) rates for MRI and CT scan services.

Unique Wellness will run five MRI centers in Thane and Pune regions, while Krshnaa Diagnostics will run 17 centers in the rest of the state.

While these companies will set up 31 new CT scan facilities, the operations of the state’s existing 31 CT scan centers will also be handed over to them, an officer said.

The state anticipates that each MRI facility could serve up to 15 patients daily, while CT scan facilities may accommodate over 20 patients per day, according to estimates.

The government expects to learn from the experiences of the first year before drawing any conclusive cost estimates. Kumar said these centers will be allowed to accommodate private patients, but only after stipulated hours.

Last year, the Maharashtra state's health authorities partnered with Godrej Consumer Products Limited (GCPL), the Centre for Health Research and Innovation (CHRI-PATH), and Family Health India (FH India) to combat several health threats.

The program sought to address the alarming increase in dengue and chikungunya cases, primarily focusing on the Thane-Palghar district.