Launching a hospital in Rural Bihar
Taking my interest in Design for Social Impact to working in healthcare at the grassroots level.
Last week we launched the first hospital in our vision to improve quality of healthcare in rural Bihar’s Kosi region. This region falls behind on most of the SDG Indexes in India, whether it is education or healthcare.
The ARK Hospital building was inaugurated ‘By The Public’. An inauguration not by a politician, is uncommon in this part of world.
In May 2020 during migration crisis, and later subsequent healthcare crisis, a few folks I knew personally struggled to get access to oxygen, ambulances and beds. The situation was grave in rural parts where there was lesser access to the above.
I spend a considerable time to understand healthcare system. Having doctor parents helped, as I got firsthand experience information. My father was to retire from govt services in Dec ’21. We set our selves a target to launch a small hospital in a couple years time.
An architect friend who was working on a future project with me was asked to change track and give a detail plan for a hospital instead.
We had to let go of our beloved Mango and Litchi trees in our garden with the belief to build an institution whose fruits would be cherished by thousands more.
22nd June 2020, we set the foundation for the building. ARK Hospital went live to the public on 2nd June 2022.
Healthcare in India is a classic case of #WickedProblems. It has multiple layers of complexity. In Bihar, it is further worsened due to poor healthcare infrastructure, shortage of doctors, lower education levels, lack of trained healthcare workers, minimal insurance adoption, and a public system that has many flaws to it.
This requires deep #SystemsThinking to solve for it.
What differentiates a designer from the others is the higher state of empathy to all stakeholders in the system. Working from home for my full time role during Covid, and being able to spend time over weekends in speaking to different stakeholders was helpful.
I spoke to hundreds of patients, their guardians, their attendants, doctors, ambulance service, small hospital owners, large hospital owners, amongst a few.
When you do divergent thinking as advocated by the #DesignThinking frameworks, you end up navigating many unfamiliar territories that could demoralise one very quickly as the situation is grim. However it is important to believe that the dots are connected and develop the lens of big picture thinking to be able to solve for it.
One needs to have a Systemic view of rural healthcare in India through the lens of complexity. It’s essential to pay attention to the various components of the system and its deep inter relatedness.
This marks the launch of Happy Horizons Healthcare. I will join its governing board as a Director. The on ground team will work towards delivery of better healthcare services to rural parts of Bihar.
We have an opportunity to serve. We will do this by staying humble.
Please join me in wishing the team the best!
