Thursday, September 13, 2007 World-renowned cardiac surgeon to give RP business a heart
HE REGARDS himself as a cardiac surgeon in a heartless world. To nearly 20,000 of India's poorest whom he has touched and cured, he is god personified. Much like his former patient, Mother Teresa, his mission is saintly: to save the world.
Bangalore-based Dr. Devi Prasad Shetty, founder of Narayana Hrudayalaya Institute of Medical Sciences, is arriving in Manila this October to share the secrets of his success in combining medicine and technology in one of the poorest places on Earth: India.
The British-trained cardiologist is one of 13 world-renowned business leaders and visionaries speaking at the 6th Management Association of the Philippines (MAP) International CEO Conference at the Makati Shangri-La this October 2 to 3.
"This will be a rare occasion for Filipino medical practitioners to learn valuable lessons from Dr. Shetty's experience in making healthcare available to the masses," said Evelyn R. Singson, conference chair and former chair of Asian Hospital and Medical Center.
Dr. Shetty and his team at the Narayana Hrudayalaya Institute have been saving the lives of thousands of heart patients in India - almost half are children and babies - who get mostly free or subsidized treatment regardless of economic status or geographic location.
The mechanics of heart surgery, Dr. Shetty believes, are easy -- it's the cost that kills.
Every year, two and a half million Indians need to undergo a heart operation.
They are three times more genetically prone to heart diseases than Australians, Americans, or Europeans. Yet few can afford even basic healthcare, let alone heart surgery. Currently, those who undergo the operation make up less than half of a percent of those diagnosed.
Dr. Shetty's solution is simple yet bold: bring the mountain to Mohammed. His Narayana Hrudayalaya Hospital set up a network of coronary care units in remote government hospitals around India.
These are all video-linked via satellite to the hospital in Bangalore - allowing him to consult patients in far-flung rural areas who otherwise would never have access to specialist medical advice.
"The beauty of telemedicine is that it makes ordinary doctors do extraordinary things," Dr. Shetty said in an interview with an Indian daily.
Those interested to see and hear Dr. Shetty and other top business leaders and visionaries shaping today's global business may register online for the 6th MAP International CEO Conference at www.mapceoconference.com or call the MAP Secretariat at telephone numbers (632) 751-1149 to 52.
