Hemalata Hospitals plan Rs 40 cr expansion

Business Standard, 30th May, 2008

Hemalata Hospitals and Research Centre (HHRC), a multi-speciality hospital for cancer and neurosciences, has planned to foray into other areas of healthcare specialities like orthopaedics, trauma and critical care by the end of 2009.
The 100- bed hospital would invest Rs 40 crore in providing additional beds, operation theatres and other necessary equipment.
"We intend to extend our healthcare facilities in other speciality areas like orthopaedics, trauma and critical care. We aim to raise the bed strength from 100 to 250 and also take the number of operation theatres from three to six by the end of next year", said AK Rath, the chairman and managing director of HHRC.
Rath, however admitted that there would be a problem in getting qualified professionals for the new specialities, especially that of trauma and critical care,When asked whether the hospital was getting cancer patients from outside the state, he replied, "We have been able to get a few patients from places like Ranchi and Raipur but the numbers are not very impressive.
There is still a growing number of people from Orissa who go out of the state for cancer treatment and we first need to win their confidence."
He was talking to reporters on the eve of World No Tobacco Day being observed by the hospital.
HHRC, spread over an area of around 80,000 sq ft and equipped with three super speciality operation theatres has treated over 2,000 cancer patients in two and a half years.
This year, HHRC would organise cancer awareness camps in different locations of the state like Puri, Rayagada, Bolangir, Bhawanipatna and Parlekhamundi.
"Tobacco use is a risk factor for six of the eight leading causes of death in the world. The eight leading causes of death are ischaemic heart disease, cancer, cerebrovascular disease, lower respiratory infections, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, HIV/AIDS and diarrhoea", Rath added.
He stressed on the need for an organised cancer registry in the state to compile figures of the cancer patients and tobacco related deaths.