SHRI announces first private medical college in NE

By Our Staff Reporter
IMPHAL, Nov 7 :  Shija Hospitals and Research Institute (SHRI) has announced the first homegrown private medical college in North-East India christened "Shija Academy of Health Sciences (SAHS)".
Announcing this here at Manipur Press Club today, Chairman and Managing Director of SHRI Pvt Ltd Dr Palin Khundongbam informed that  after due inspection and screening, the National Medical Commission has permitted SHRI to start the new private medical college with 150 students intake capacity per year at 'Health Village, Langol, Imphal West, Manipur' under the name and style of Shija Academy of Health Sciences (SAHS) from the academic session 2021-2022.
The main purpose of establishing the new medical college is to produce strong, empathetic, compassionate, socially and environmentally responsible research-oriented medical graduates and postgraduates for the new era of health sciences, he said.
The college will also provide affordable quality healthcare and medical value tourism to help save the State’s exchequer and promote inclusive growth of the region, he said.
SHRI had a humble beginning as Shija Clinic, a mono practice attached to a pharmacy at Paona Bazar in 1985 but now, it is a NABH (Pre Entry) certified 350 bedded (including 60 critical care beds) super speciality hospital supported by 1,399 caregivers including 165 full-time doctors. It is located at the foothill of Langol, Imphal West and has a NABL accredited laboratory, he said.
SHRI has been able to stop many patients from going outside the State by bringing in more needed facilities in the State, he said.
The hospital played a key role in the detection and treatment of COVID cases in both the first and second waves of the COVID-19 pandemic, he added.
On SHRI's achievement, Dr Palin said that it has set Guinness World Record for successful removal of the largest neck tumour (40% of total body weight) in 2006 and re-implanted 8 totally amputated hands and fingers.
The hospital is a leading brand in kidney and cornea transplantation, keyhole surgery, plastic surgery, interventional radiology, advanced stroke management cardiac science, joint replacement, neuroscience, renal science, gastroenterology, eye care, palliative care etc and is also running a Common Biomedical Waste Management, he said.
SHRI is empanelled by CMHT, PMJAY, 30 other Government and private organizations for reimbursement and has treated more than 57,000 patients including dialysis under CMHT and PMJAY so far, he informed.
Out of the over 4000 medical aspirants in Manipur alone, only about 150 students are selected as Government nominees and over 400 Manipuri students are going outside the State and country for private medical studies every year. Currently it is estimated that about 700 Manipuri medical students are studying in China alone and approximately over Rs 500 crore is spent outside the State annually for healthcare and medical education, he said.
"The figure may rise if we include the expenditure of dental, nursing, paramedical and health management studies outside the State," he added.
The proposed private medical college will have an academic block and an independent subsidized 700 bedded teaching hospital which will be constructed within two years, he said while adding that SHRI plans to have a satellite 100 bedded hospital at the international border, Moreh, to cater the primary and secondary healthcare for the border areas of India and Myanmar and also a Rural Health Centre within a 40 km radius.
The seat sharing (State Government Nominee, Shija Management Nominee, and Non-Resident Indian) and annual fee structures are already proposed to the Government of Manipur based on one of the nearest private medical colleges in Kolkata as there is no full private medical college in NE India, he said.
The medical college will not only generate employment but also help the State to develop as one of the global healthcare destinations, Dr Palin continued.
With the proposed world-class healthcare service at an affordable cost, the medical college is expected to attract domestic as well as global medical tourists, he said.
It will also provide ample opportunities for capacity building of the local population and can supply the healthcare workforce to developed Nations and at the same time the teaching institute will attract both domestic and international students which will help in the generation of foreign exchange that will contribute towards inclusive economic growth of the State, he said.
Further it will also help in the enhancement of goodwill between India and Myanmar and beyond through healthcare, said Dr Palin who also continued that SHRI envisions to be a premium and leading brand in healthcare services globally by 2026, recognized by customers for its holistic approach, personal touch, and technological advancement.