Patna's Beacon of Hope

In 1996, he started his journey as an entreprenuer by setting up a urologic clinic in Patna in a hired house. Today, his success story includes a diagnostic centre and two hospitals

Dr Col AK Singh (68) Managing Director, Ruban Memorial Hospital, Patna

Born on November 1940 in Patna, he pursued MBBS from Patna Medical College and Masters in Hospital Management from AIIMS, New Delhi.

Why an entrepreneur?

He says he differs from other healthcare practitioners who are occupational or investors in their business venture. "I have become entrepreneur for my professional obligation towards the people in those areas of the country where the occupational and investment-oriented healthcare practitioners had not shown any interest. That my place of entrepreneurship is at Patna in Bihar is evidence of my reason of becoming an entrepreneur," says he.

Before being an entrepreneur

In 1964, he started his career in Armed Forces Medical Services. His first posting was at Hospital 156 General Hospital in Barrackpore, West Bengal. Then for nine years, he travelled to various parts of the country (Lucknow, Delhi and J&K). After doing his masters, he joined AFMC as an Assistant Professor. Later, he was shifted as a Commanding Officer of Military Hospital, Nasirabad near Ajmer. In 1992, he took voluntary retirement from the army. While he was in the army, he started working as an honorary consultant to the 1,000-bed KLES hospital in Belgaum. Soon after leaving army, he worked as a Medical Director to the hospital.

The first move

In 1993, he formed Medicontrivers, a hospital management consultancy division. He started doing consultancy work for Ruby Hall Clinic, MIMS, etc. And in 1996, he established Basudev Health Foundation, which started Ratan Stone Clinic in a hired house in Patna. This was in association with his younger brother Dr Satyajit Singh, a urology consultant who gave up his career in the UK to come back to Bihar. "We funded this project from personal saving of mine and my younger brother, interest-free hand loans from well-wishers and relatives, deferred payment from equipment suppliers as goodwill gesture due to past association and term loan from the bank," he recollects.

Over the years

In 2000, he established Dr Ruban Memorial Hospital Patna, also located in a rented nursing home building. "This hospital is a kidney speciality hospital which pioneered the first ever kidney transplant in Bihar," says he. This was funded by margin money from the saving of Ratan Stone Clinic, deferred payment from the suppliers and the term loan from the bank.

In 2004, he established Dr Ruban Diagnostic, the first diagnostics centre in Bihar to introduce digital X-Ray, multislice CT scan, 4D color doppler and mammography unit and a complete range of fully automated high-end hospital laboratory services, cardiac stress test laboratory and pulmonary function test laboratory under one roof.

In 2008, he commissioned the 82-bed Ruban Emergency Hospital, again in a hired nursing home building. "This is the first emergency medical services dedicated state-of-the-art hospital of Bihar. This venture was funded by savings of Ruban Memorial Hospital, term deferred payment from the suppliers and term loan from State Bank of India," he states. “While the two hospitals are growing from strength to strength, the diagnostics centre is running in loss and is a financial misadventure,” he discloses.

Fears and apprehensions

"I had no fear and apprehension for the first two ventures (Ratan Stone Clinic and Ruban Memorial Hospital) except unforeseen divine event striking me and my brother. However, for the third venture (Ruban Diagnostics), I was apprehensive about the support from the doctors' community in utilisation of the advanced technology based diagnostic facilities," he admits.

Overcoming roadblocks

The major roadblock was lack of financial muscle to establish a comprehensive centre under one roof with well-planned physical facilities. "However, this handicap has been temporarily overcome by extensive renovation of the hired premises to allow good standard practice of the medical services. A well-coordinated mutual support from between the institution greatly overcame the roadblock," says he.

There were many more challenges. "Attracting professionals and skilled nursing and paramedical staff to man the facilities suitably in Bihar was a challenge. Barring a few clinical practitioners, there is no significant demand amongst the majority of medical practitioners towards the utilisation of high technology based diagnostics and treatment facilities. The unfortunate practice of cut practice in the referrals in service posed as a major roadblock in investment into high-cost high technology-based medical technology," notifies Dr (Col) Singh.

Mistakes made and lessons learnt

He wrongly assessed the motivating factor behind referrals by practicing doctors. "Launching the project without enough financial working capital to service the loan interest and loan servicing before the maturity of the project was another blunder," he confesses. The lesson he learnt was to establish centres with direct address to the beneficiaries rather than depend on doctors for referrals.

Any formal degree in management?

He feels a formal degree in management from recognised authority is a must to call the management of healthcare institution as a profession. "Formal education is important not only to impart knowledge but also to act as an ordered obligatory motivation to perform and also do better than the occupational and business based healthcare management practitioner," says he.

Tips for entrepreneurship

“An entrepreneur should be task-oriented, determined and dedicated for the cause for which he undertakes the entrepreneurship in the field of his choice. He should be prepared for mental, physical and financial stress during the initial period of institution, establishment and growth. He should set up facilities which addresses the beneficiaries directly rather than going through the referrals," he suggests.

An entrepreneur that he admires in healthcare

“Dr Siddhartha Rai, MD, Heritage Hospital, Varanasi, a young doctor with humble resources, chose Varanasi— a relatively economically backward city has the place of his entrepreneur which reflects his dedication to serve his place of origin not only because he belongs to that place or community but also because of the fact that place badly required a modern medical facility,” says he. He also admires Dr Prathap C Reddy.

The road ahead

He has taken up consultancy work for the upcoming Medicity project of Heritage Hospital, Varanasi. He also plans to starting a multi-specialty hospital of 500 beds in Patna, soon.