Hundreds of people in Dar es Salaam requiring non-emergency surgeries will have an opportunity to access this service, thanks to specialists from Narayana Hospitals in Bangalore, India who are expected in the country next month.

The Sanitas Medical and Diagnostic Centre Chief Executive Officer, Mr Murthy Venkateswaran, told the ‘Daily News’ yesterday that the specialists in orthopedic (bones), gastroenterology (digestive system), ear, nose and throat and ophthalmology (eye problems) will be in the country on September 17, 2012.

“If you have non-emergency surgeries and lined up to go to India, Nairobi, South Africa or anywhere else, you might want to consider waiting until 17th September and getting them done right here by these specialists.  It will save you significant money and produce far better outcomes,” he said.

Mr Venkateswaran said patients seeking the services of these specialists will have to part with 50,000/- and that the specialists from September 18 – 20, 2012 will conduct surgeries at AMI Hospital under the aegis of Sanitas.

Previously, Sanitas had partnered with Nova Hospitals also from India and the partnership broke up due to technical problems but Mr Venkateswaran stressed that Sanitas’ vision was to bring world class medical treatment to Africa and particularly Tanzania while keeping the costs low.

Ms Assia Mohamed, a resident of Mbezi Beach suffering from neurological complications said she had been saving with the aim of travelling to India for treatment, adding that the coming of the specialists was a blessing.

“The coming of specialists from India has been the best news I have ever heard in a long time. I am hoping that the specialists being here will reduce the costs,” she said.

According to a recent documentary by Al Jazeera on Indian hospitals, Narayana Hrudayalaya Hospital Complex in Bangalore, meaning ‘Temple of the Heart,” is a hospital with a difference – determined to make a difference.

This hospital is a brainchild of Dr Devi Shetty, one of the world’s top cardiac surgeons and 10 years on from its founding, it has become a hugely successful and profitable business.

At Narayana, approximately 40 per cent of patients pay a reasonable price for their treatment, a small percentage. Those who “want the frills of executive rooms” – pay a premium while the majority pays less than the market rate and 10 to 20 per cent pay virtually nothing. For the latter, the hospital’s charitable wing raises money to help compensate for the material costs of their treatment.

Narayana Hrudayalaya was founded by one of the India’s oldest construction companies “Shankar Narayana Construction Company.” Narayana Hrudayalaya group currently has 5,000 beds in India and aims to have 30,000 beds in the next 5 years in India to become one of the largest healthcare player in the country.

By MASEMBE TAMBWE, Tanzania Daily News