Fed up with management-led hospitals, a group of doctors has started a medical centre off the EM Bypass. Genesis Hospital has followed the route taken by Howrah’s Westbank Hospital in offering “affordable healthcare for the middle-class”, at a doctor-driven address.

The 75-bed, five-storeyed unit close to Ruby General Hospital, on the Gariahat connector, opened its doors to patients this week, though it is to be formally inaugurated in mid-March. A collaborative effort of the doctors, the hospital has former footballer Chuni Goswami and doctor Purnendu Roy as its two managing directors.

The doctors are the “backbone” of the set-up, with Goswami’s son Sudipto operating as chief executive. The centre will concentrate on three main specialities — laparoscopic surgery, gynaecology and urology. It is equipped with a neo-natal intensive care unit and a high-dependency wing.

“Most hospitals nowadays refer to patients as customers or clients. They will not feel that way here. This is a human relationship,” stresses urologist Amit Ghose. To keep the middle class from “running away from the state for treatment”, costs have been kept low — ranging from Rs 500 to Rs 1,200 for air-conditioned dormitories to single rooms. Packages, promise the doctors, will be cheaper than the prevailing rates, and invasive, expensive procedures will be avoided wherever possible.

The “time has come to change the way hospitals are run”, feels gynaecologist Gautam Khastgir. “Hysterectomy is becoming an obsolete procedure. Methods like balloon therapy, where the patient can go home in a few hours and pay a fraction of the price, are now available,” he says. With managers “always counting funds”, most hospitals do not endorse such options. “But if someone starts, patients will demand this from other hospitals as well,” adds Khastgir.

Day-care facilities will be available for those whose operations do not call for an overnight stay. There will be no extra charge levied for these beds.

Training will be a priority. Live operations can be broadcast into a 200-seater auditorium to enable students from medical colleges and junior doctors to learn procedures not commonly practised in state hospitals. Tie-ups for tele-medicine are also an option.

“The doctors will pump back a section of the profits for medical development,” explains Ghose. “If there is a need, we will import skilled doctors to train us in advanced procedures.”

While planning the hospital, special attention was paid to the usual complaints about healthcare. Expense, quality of service and food were common grievances against most medical establishments, which the team at Genesis has tried to address.

“We wanted to set up something for the people. Something that can be used by the middle class,” says Chuni Goswami.