‘Life’s on’ at KMC Hospital M’lore, but it can be supplemented: CA Valerian Dalmaida

Kasturba Medical College (KMC) Hospital is very well known not only in India but all over the world for quality all-round medical care. Be that as it may, it is but natural, that one avoids a hospital, no matter how good it is, because of its stated purpose – to heal the sick; but when one is sick, one tends to go to the best! Because good health is the be-all and end-all of life itself and its restoration is everyone’s – the patient, his / her family, kin and friends’ – first priority.

I’ve been in hospitals myself before, but this time I was at the KMC Hospital at Jyothi in Mangaluru, as my wife was unwell with Dengue, a mosquito-borne disease that is ravaging the coasts on both sides of the country; indeed a report on CNN.com says that it is widespread across the whole of southeast Asia. The report says it is the effect of climate change, and possibly it is. Dengue was unheard of in my heydays!

My wife had fallen ill a day after my mother’s funeral (she was 89) and on the advice of Dr. Deepak Madi a young brilliant physician, she was tested for Dengue and found positive. There was no cause for alarm he assured us, but when, on the fourth-day weakness overtook her, the doctor said, “Admit her”; and I did, and there began my tryst with the KMC hospital.

The admission process was smooth. I was asked a lot of documentation – which is necessary in our interconnected and interdependent world – and I provided it all – from personal details to test reports to medical insurance, by email and in person, and later confirmed they were well received. Offered a choice of rooms, I opted for a single air-conditioned room in the new building which came at a reasonable cost.

On settling down, I found the room was well equipped with all medical necessities, storage facilities, a couple of sofas and chairs for visitors, and a TV for entertainment of the attendant and perhaps the patient, when she could, which was not much, given the nature of her illness and weakness. The closet too was well fitted out, clean and hygienically maintained and equipped for stay. Bed Linen was supplied and changed every day for the patient and the attendant too, which is quite remarkable. What struck my eye, being a management consultant, was the effort at branding and brand recall – the wall clock was branded with the KMC hospital Logo and tagline – ‘Life’s on’.

For the patient, there was a mechanical bed, and best of all, visitors were not barred, something I was really happy about as we come from a rather well-extended close-knit family; in addition we have many friends who keep in touch with us and rushed to visit on hearing the news of my wife’s admission.

That hygiene was a priority for the hospital was evident from the fact that the room was cleaned at least 3 times a day, dustbins cleared twice a day and retrofitted with new garbage bags every time. Commendable.

Hospitals and Hospitality – though the words sound similar, they do not often go hand in hand in India. At KMC Jyothi, I soon found out that they do. As soon as we entered the room, the patient received a complimentary soup. Before long, we found that the patient’s entire diet was complimentary (and complementary) – breakfast, soup, lunch, evening tea and biscuits, and dinner. That’s a great concept for the healthcare sector in India to adopt!

The raison d’État of a hospital is its medical care. Good medical care envisages competence, collaboration, and dedication among the medical, para-medical, janitorial and even the administrative staff of the hospital; all of these dimensions were on display in ample measure during my wife’s hospitalization. Dr. Deepak Madi and the resident medical personnel too were comforting and curative in their treatment plans and open to answering all our queries and doubts with patience.

Being a management professional and involved with industries in many sectors, including health and hospitality in India and abroad, I observe infrastructure, branding practices, core competencies and customer centricities with a keen eye wherever I go – it’s become a habit that has stood me in good stead. But it’s important to share this feedback with the concerned too and that’s what I decided to do. I believe my feedback can, if acted upon, help the hospital further build its brand, and improve its patient care model. Indeed, what impressed me was the visit by the operations head, just before we left, seeking comprehensive feedback on the hospital’s treatment (medical and non-medical) of the patient (and her attendant).

I took the opportunity to give him some ideas to enhance branding and patient care. Here are excerpts of what I told him.

1. The complimentary food should be made and supplied by the hospital itself; this is a common practice today in the health industry and it is a revenue centre by itself.
2.  The crockery in which the food is supplied could be more presentable and with Hospital branding. This will leave a lasting impression in the minds of the patients and visitors.
3. The food should be of good quality – taste-wise – and served hot.
4. The biscuits at tea time are now supplied with white tissue paper cover which could be given in specially manufactured small packs with Hospital Branding. (They can also get cheaper when its direct from the manufacturer. This suggestion is based on the check-in experience at hotels.
5. The most useful item of modern living – the Tissue Box – was missing. It would have been nice if Hospital branded tissue boxes are kept in all rooms, lobby, Emergency room, and doctors consultation chambers. This will promote brand recall.
   6. On the medical side, I believe it would be useful for the patient if he/she is given a copy of the report of all lab tests done during his stay for future reference. The reports are not shared, and the patient and his / her attendant are often in the dark about the condition of the patient, unless they ask specific questions. It’s a point to ponder. 
6. The hospital houses its medical facilities at two buildings; one old and one new. They are connected by a covered over-bridge and ground floor pathway. However, parking is quite a challenge. Free valet parking (by the security staff) is provided at the old building, but at the new, this facility is unavailable. Hopefully, this will be corrected in the coming days.
7. The emphasis on hygiene can be seen from the fact that the housekeeping staff uses gloves while cleaning the washroom. This is excellent from the hygiene point of view. However, on exiting she opens the door with the same gloves on which allows for the deposit of the germs on the handle which is then used by the patient or others. This could be avoided.
8. As a management consultant, I am keen to see all departments of an organization function by set standards. This is achieved by drafting and abiding by Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs). I am curious to know if SOPs exist or are followed as a rule in the Hospital. This doubt came to mind as the patient – my wife – received a call from Kanchana Motors Hyundai informing her to remove her vehicle from the KMC hospital parking lest it is towed. If the security department had an SOP in place and was abiding by it in its operations, they would have first checked ownership of the vehicle with the RTO (it’s easy these days) and then cross verify with the admission records to ascertain linkage with the hospital. I did inform the administration when this incident occurred and they have taken suitable action and I trust it will not recur in the future. 
9. The parking facility needs improvement at the hospital premises; though the hospital has created a parking facility little away from the hospital, the road to and from it is in a pathetic condition. Perhaps the hospital can examine beautifying the road and its surroundings from this independent parking area to the hospital premises under their CSR activity.

There’s no doubt that ‘Life’s on’ at the KMC Hospital Jyothi, Mangaluru. We experienced it and are thankful to them for the curative experience. But if supplemented by acting on a few of the suggestions above, the experience can go beyond being merely curative – and that’s how a hospitalization experience must be. The motto being: Bigger the brand, better the experience!