Enhanced Support To Medical Education Welcome
The budgeted increase in healthcare expenditure of 15% does not seem to enough to tide over the current challenges, Gautam Khanna, CEO of Hinduja Hospital said.
MUMBAI, Feb 2 (The CONNECT) – Budget 2023-24 focused on enhancing India’s capabilities and resources through increased manpower, R&D, and PPP in healthcare sector, said Gautam Khanna, CEO P.D. Hinduja Hospital & Chairman FICCI Health Services:
Setting up of 157 new Nursing colleges is welcome, in view of the severe shortage of nurses in the country. However the current state of existing Nursing colleges must .be evaluated for upgradation & better job opportunity for nurses to be identified to curb international migration.
The idea of setting up a Centre of Excellence in AI for health along with the strengthened impetus towards medical education will accelerate the development of new-age, technology-driven medical solutions for better disease management and encourage start-ups to come up with Innovative solutions in the Healthcare Delivery space, Khanna said.
Creating awareness of prevention and early screening is not only essential in eliminating sickle cell anaemia but would also be a great stepping stone for similar diseases , however its success will depend on effective implementation. The increased focus on encouraging medical education and PPP will aid the industry’s growth. The budgeted increase in healthcare expenditure of 15% does not seem to enough to tide over the current challenges of upgradation of infrastructure and providing accessibility and affordability for quality healthcare in the country. We are looking forward to clear indications of the steps to be implemented for healthcare infrastructure development and move closer towards universal health coverage with increased expenditure as a % to GDP. It would have been better if there were tax exemptions for healthcare, which is vital to reduce healthcare expenses & out of the pocket spending”
