A newly released report focusing on patient empowerment produced by the UK’s All Party Parliamentary Group on Global Health has cited systems put in place by Narayana Health, Bangalore, India, the parent company of Health City Cayman Islands, as important points of reference that the UK could follow in a bid to improve its own healthcare system.

The report, entitled, ‘Patient empowerment: for better quality, more sustainable health services globally’, addresses the issue of how patients and their relatives can be better involved in the decision-making process of their illness and take responsibility for elements of their care. It looks to various examples globally as to how this can be achieved. The report stated, “Providing care in this way isn’t just a vital component of good quality, it’s also essential to the sustainability of health systems for the future”.

The report also stated: “We found there is a great deal the UK can learn from other countries about transforming systems, behaviours, and mindsets to change the patient role.”

In particular, the Care Companion programme at Narayana Health Hospital, Bangalore, India, was highlighted as a success story worthy of attention.

The report identified how the Care Companion programme aimed to empower the caregivers of at-risk patients with the skills they needed to take better care of their loved ones back at home. It notes that the hospital’s leaders say that 100 percent of trainees report the programme as ‘very useful’ and that they integrate very well into the day-to-day running of the hospital, resulting in a repositioning of family members as an integral part of patient care (while reducing the workload for hospital staff).

Dr. Chandy Abraham, Medical and Facility Director at Health City Cayman Islands, Cayman’s new private hospital specialising in tertiary care for cardiac, orthopaedic, pulmonary and paediatric endocrinology, stated the fact that the report has identified Narayana Health in this way was a testament to the hospital and how it was viewed as a global leader in the provision of healthcare.

“Narayana Health has played a vital role in improving the provision of healthcare not just in India but globally,” Dr. Chandy Abraham said. “By introducing concepts such as patient empowerment through its Care Companion programme, Narayana Health has managed to achieve what was unthinkable just a decade ago – affordable healthcare for the general public that continues to exceed quality benchmarks at the same time. We are delighted that the UK All Parliamentary Group and Global Health have recognized that the Care Companion programme is worthy of serious consideration in assisting the improvement of the UK’s own healthcare system.”

Dr Chandy adds that there are plans for Health City Cayman Islands to implement this programme in the near future, as this is a component of the patient centred care that will be a hallmark for the Health City Cayman Islands.