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NEW DELHI: The Indian healthcare industry will need to add 1.4 million doctors and over three million nurses by 2017 if the country has to meet even the healthcare standards of other BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia and China), a report by research firm Technopak and industry body CII said.
At present, for every 1,000 people living in India there are merely 0.7 beds much below China and Brazil which have 2.6 beds and 2.8 beds respectively for every 1000 population. The acute shortage is expected to continue as around 22,000 doctors graduate every year in India, which will not meet the requirements of the fast booming healthcare sector. The country would need to produce around 1.5 lakh to 2 lakh graduates per year to fill the shortage.
“The healthcare industry will need an investment of over $1,000 billion over the next 20 years which is $50 billion per year. The huge investment, which is a conservative estimate, is to address the ageing population and lifestyle related diseases of a population which would have grown over 1.4 billion by 2027, “ Technopak chairman Arvind Singhal said at the 4th India Health Summit.
A large portion of the investment about 30-40%, however, goes in buying the capital intensive medical equipment, 90% of which are imported.
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