High on healthcare: Tata Main Hospital in Jamshedpur

Take heart. Jharkhand’s oldest private healthcare institution — the 104-year-old Tata Main Hospital (TMH) in Jamshedpur — is in talks with Fortis Group to set up a super-speciality cardiac care facility on its steel city campus, while a medical college in collaboration with Manipal Hospitals Group is in the planning stages as well.

A senior TMH official, speaking to The Telegraph on condition of anonymity, said several rounds of talks with Delhi-based Fortis Escorts Heart Institute and Research Centre had already taken place and a few pending operational details about the cardiac care facilities to be offered were likely to be ironed out in the next few months.

He added that the Tata Steel-managed TMH had sent a proposal for a full-fledged medical college in collaboration with Bangalore-based Manipal Hospitals Group to the Medical Council of India (MCI) and the Union ministry of health and family welfare for consent.

“TMH is not a profit-oriented unit and primarily aims to fulfil the social obligations of Tata Steel towards its employees and society, while Fortis Group has a slightly differently outlook. The finer details on the super-speciality cardiac care unit are being chalked out so that there is no clash of interest after the launch of the unit,” said the source.

The Fortis network comprises 39 hospitals across the country with 5,000 beds. It offers 48,000 surgical methods, making it the largest healthcare provider in India.

“People of the state now have to visit metros for treatment of complex cardiac cases, which would now be possible in the city itself after the cardiac centre becomes operational,” said the source.

Meanwhile, the 899-bed TMH, which offers educational opportunity for postgraduate studies in the form of diplomas awarded by the National Board of Examinations and Ranchi University is awaiting an MCI and Union ministry nod for the medical college in collaboration with the Manipal Group.

“We have an existing teaching facility for postgraduate diploma courses in nine subjects. The joint proposal of TMH and Manipal has been sent and we are awaiting confirmation after which we will construct the medical college,” said a source.

Students admitted to TMH for diploma courses are provided hostel facilities within the hospital campus which also has a library that stays open till 10pm and Internet facilities.

Tata Steel would be providing land for setting up the college in accordance with MCI strictures within 10km of the hospital.

Manipal Hospitals Group manages 11 hospitals, including eight teaching hospitals. It now has internationally-renowned hospitals in its ambit, such as the Manipal Hospital in Bangalore and Kasturba Hospital in Manipal.

Tata Main Hospital GM (medical services) T.P. Madhusudanan confirmed the developments, but refused to divulge details of the projects.