India’s healthcare industry has, is, and continues to grow by leaps and bounds, and it’s easy to see why this is the case. After all, the country is known for sporting accessible and affordable healthcare services, which is the primary reason why people from all over the world – especially in places like the US where healthcare is incredibly expensive – prefer to carry out their medical operations in India.

Speaking of the healthcare industry, India is expected to rank amongst the top three markets in the world in terms of incremental growth by 2020. At this point, one might understandably have a pressing question in their mind that needs to be answered – what are the factors that are contributing to this incredible growth of the healthcare industry?
Four pointers can answer this question at length.

Increasing awareness when it comes to lifestyle diseases

In the simplest terms, lifestyle diseases refer to ailments that affect the day-to-day life of a person. The prevalence of lifestyle diseases can be seen all around us – in fact, its highly probable that you have a person at home who suffers from diabetes, thyroid, hypertension, stress, obesity, or anything else along the same lines.
With awareness for these diseases reaching an all-time high – especially with the rampant urbanisation going on all around us – is it all that surprising that 50% of all spending on in-patient beds is because of these lifestyle diseases?

Rising disposable income and healthcare expenditure

Income levels have been on the rise over a continuous period, making it quite evident that the average healthcare expenditure of a person would also increase as a result. This can be seen in the increased demand for healthcare services that are more reliable and sport a higher level of quality to boot.
While the statement applies to the metro areas of India, this increased demand can especially be seen in Tier II and Tier III cities.

Greater prevalence of healthcare insurance among the masses

The penetration of healthcare insurance has reached a head in the 21st century, with more and more people realising the importance that this form of insurance will hold in their lives. After all, healthcare expenditure is no joke, making it the need of the hour to ensure that any medical expenses can be accounted for through insurance.
This can be seen in the fact that the number of medically-insured Indians is continuously rising over the years, reaching a number close to 500 million by FY 2018. With greater awareness when it comes to the benefits of medical insurance, it’s evident that the healthcare industry will directly benefit as a result of higher penetration of healthcare insurance amongst the masses.

Higher levels of healthcare financing and support

The sheer level of support that the Indian government has provided to the healthcare industry is nothing short of amazing. To put this statement into context, here are a few of the many initiatives that the healthcare industry has taken to promote the Indian healthcare industry:

● Launching the Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY) on September 23, 2018, to provide health insurance worth Rs. 5,00,000 (US$ 7,124.54) to over 100 million families every year.

● Approving the Ayushman Bharat-National Health Protection Mission as a centrally-sponsored scheme contributed by both centre and state government.

● Launching Mission Indradhanush to improve immunisation coverage to at least 90% across the country by December 2018.
This, coupled with rising levels of FDI and investment by private sector players, will go a long way in ensuring that little to no problems come in the way of the healthcare industry growing at a massive rate.

India’s healthcare industry is making waves all over the world due to the sheer scale and growth of this sector. Many factors have contributed to the immense growth of this sector. The emergence of lifestyle diseases, rising healthcare expenditure, a higher proportion of healthcare insurance applicants, and support in terms of healthcare financing are just a few of the many factors mentioned above. Thus, the demand for new-age professionals in this sector will reach a substantially high level, and one such institute that is helping meet this increased demand is ICRI. Their MBA in Healthcare and Hospital Management course is going a long way in ensuring that the industry can meet their employment demands with the greatest of ease.