Bridging the Gap: How Noora Hospital is Changing Kashmir's Medical Landscape

In Kashmir, a pioneering spirit has been reshaping the landscape of private healthcare. Manzoor Ahmad, Managing Director of Noora Hospital, chose to invest in his homeland rather than pursue opportunities abroad after completing his studies in the UK. His vision has given birth to a healthcare institution that has become a household name in the region.
Noora Hospital, established in 2012, stands as a testament to Manzoor's commitment to addressing the critical gaps in Kashmir's healthcare system.

In an exclusive interview with Greater Kashmir's Business Editor, Mukeet Akmali, Manzoor opens up about his journey, the challenges he faced, and his aspirations for the future of healthcare in Kashmir.
From its humble beginnings to its current status as a multi-speciality hospital, Noora Hospital's story is one of determination and service to the community. Manzoor shares insights into the motivations behind this ambitious project, the obstacles overcome, and the evolving landscape of private healthcare in the region. Here are excerpts.

Can you tell us about your background and what inspired you to enter the healthcare field?

I am an MBA graduate from De Montfort University Leicester (UK), and my motivation to enter into the healthcare sector came from my father who faced a serious health condition in the early 2000s for which we had to travel to Delhi because of lack of good tertiary care private hospitals in Kashmir. People had to travel to Delhi and other parts of the country, especially in the domains of Cardiology, CVTS, Oncology and other super speciality departments.

What motivated you to start Noora Hospital? When was it established?

This absence of secondary and tertiary care services in the private sector, which forced people to travel outside and go through a lot of hardships is what motivated us to invest in the healthcare sector. My father who always had this dream of giving back to society in some form, and after experiencing the lack of services in healthcare first hand decided to set up a multi-specialty hospital which can cater to the needs of the local population. With this vision, the foundation of the hospital was laid in 2008 and it was made operational in 2012.

What challenges did you face when setting up the hospital?

There were many challenges early on as there was no defined government policy vis a vis the private healthcare sector. The focus has been mainly on tourism and other sectors. It was quite a challenging task right from obtaining building permission and NOCs from different departments which can be a cumbersome and lengthy process and often puts entrepreneurs to a disadvantage. Another challenge which we faced was in terms of trained manpower. The government sector being the preferred sector for jobs, it was really difficult for us to hire and retain trained manpower. But things are changing now, and there has been a positive shift towards the private sector with better working conditions and pay packages.

How has Noora Hospital evolved since its inception?

Noora Hospital over the years has evolved into a preferred tertiary care centre for the local population. We are driven by our mission and vision which are:
Our mission is to “provide quality healthcare services to every individual at an affordable cost, consistent with the highest customer satisfaction, transparency and ethical medical practices”.
Our vision is “to be the leading multi-speciality hospital with trauma centre in the region with an emphasis on continuous effort to strive for excellence in healthcare delivery and medical education for the benefit of the community”.
Noora Hospital has some of the best healthcare professionals working in different super speciality departments like Cardiology (Adult & Pediatric), CVTS (Adult & Pediatric), Oncology, Neonatology, Urology, Joint Replacement etc, who with the use of the latest technology are delivering quality healthcare services to the people of Kashmir.
Q: What unique services or specialities does Noora Hospital offer to the community?

Being the locals, we understand the dynamics of this place. People till recently did not have health insurance, and all healthcare expenses were out of pocket. Treatments in cancer and other departments are very costly and put a lot of financial burden on the affected family. We at Noora understand this aspect and have been very flexible as far as the cost is concerned. Treatments for which people had to travel outside and spend huge amounts on hospital bills, travelling lodging can now avail all those facilities right here in Kashmir at a significantly lower cost.

Our infrastructure which includes buildings, machinery and manpower is at par with any medium-sized corporate hospital, yet our costs are significantly lesser than what it is outside.

Can you share any significant milestones or achievements of the hospital?

We are the first 100-bed multi-speciality hospital in the private sector.

• First hospital to introduce a 128-slice CT scanner.
  •First hospital in the private sector to introduce level III NICU.
  •Advanced technology for minimally invasive neuro surgeries.
  •First private hospital to introduce HD IVUS, Rotablation & FFR for high-quality and complex cardiac intervention.
  •First private hospital to have a fully functional ICU with Blood Bank (with components).

 How has the healthcare landscape in Kashmir changed since you started Noora Hospital?

The healthcare landscape in Kashmir has significantly changed over the last decade or so. With some corporate hospitals coming to Kashmir and the introduction of a healthcare investment policy by the government, the private healthcare sector is going to see a lot of investments in the coming future. This will create a lot of employment opportunities and stop the brain drain which has been happening over so many decades. There are a huge number of Kashmiri doctors working outside the state and country who want to come back. If provided with the right platform where they can utilise their skills, they would definitely want to come back and serve their community.

What role does technology play in your hospital's operations and patient care?
The quest for quality is always an ongoing endeavour of every hospital. The quality in healthcare sector is generally measured through desired health outcomes of the patients. In today's times where there is a rapid pace of change in medicine, evidence based knowledge and access to this knowledge is vital for ensuring desired outcomes of the patients. Technology plays an important role in achieving patient satisfaction and we at Noora are continuously trying to integrate and leverage technology for better patient care and experience.

How do you ensure quality healthcare and patient satisfaction at Noora Hospital?

We at Noora believe in transparency and ethical medical practices, which we believe plays a vital role in patient satisfaction. This philosophy of ethical medical practices coupled with integration of technology for everything from administrative functions to clinical decisions helps us in delivering quality services and achieve optimal patient satisfaction. Furthermore Noora Hospital is NABH accredited hospital which is a benchmark for delivery of quality health services.

Can you tell us about your expansion plans? Are there any new departments or services you're planning to introduce?

Noora Hospital with a strength of 100 beds is expanding and adding 100 more beds to meet the growing demand.

• Our NICU which is one of the best in entire J&K (more than 1000  newborns treated with excellent results) will now have 30 beds with the latest gadgetry.
  •Our nephrology department will have a new state of the art dialysis centre with latest dialysis machines.
  •We are expanding our Gastroenterology department with new interventional Gastroenterology suits which are fully equipped with latest state of the art technology.
  •Noora advanced cancer care centre is another department which we are expanding. This department will have a dedicated operation theatre & Chemotherapy ward with dedicated team of highly qualified doctors. We are also planing to add radiation oncology in the future to make it a comprehensive cancer care centre where patients will get all the services related to cancer care under one roof.
  •Cardiac surgeries will also have a dedicated operation theatre and a team of highly qualified doctors available round the clock.
  •We have added latest gadgets like HD IVUS, Rotablation and FFR for complex procedures to our cardiology department which has a state of the art Cath lab with dedicated staff and some of the renowned cardiologists available.
  •We are also planning to introduce kidney transplant unit at our hospital in future.
  •We are also planning to introduce robotics and AI technology in future.
  •To start Bariatric surgery program in future.

How do you see Noora Hospital contributing to the overall healthcare system in Kashmir?

Noora Hospital with a vision to continuously upgrade and expand its services will have all the super specialty departments for routine to complex procedures like Cardiac surgeries, invasive cardiology, neurosurgery, joint replacement surgeries, trauma services, intensive care units along with other departments to cater to the healthcare needs of the local population. With the introduction of free healthcare scheme by the central government, access to specialised healthcare services has become much easier for the general public. We at Noora intend to continue with this scheme and provide free healthcare services to the beneficiaries, especially in departments like Nephrology (Dialysis), medical oncology (cancer), cardiology, neonatology (NICU) etc.

What are your long-term goals for the hospital?
Our long-term goal is to make Noora Hospital a leading multispecialty centre by expanding our portfolio of medical care services in the region which are at par with some of the best healthcare centres in the country.

How do you balance the business aspects of running a hospital with providing affordable healthcare?
The Healthcare sector is one sector where business goals and patient care intersect. Unlike other sectors where the motive is only profit earning, in the healthcare sector our primary mandate is providing excellent patient care. It is our moral and ethical responsibility to prioritise patient well being above everything else, sometimes even at the cost of financial gain. We at Noora understand this and firmly believe in providing quality healthcare services at affordable cost.

Can you share any memorable experiences or patient stories that have impacted you personally?
There have been number of cases which have impacted and motivated me personally. A patient, resident of Budgam who was operated for cardiac tumour underwent open heart surgery and recovered completely after intensive care management. This patient had to otherwise travel outside Kashmir for this procedure which involved lot of cost. The patient’s family was extremely happy and satisfied that the surgery was done here in Kashmir and they didn’t have to travel outside which was beyond their financial means.

Our NICU has lot of success stories where newborn pre-mature babies are treated free of cost under Golden card with excellent results. Many of the parents kept their baby’s name “Noora” after they survived pre-mature birth which gives us immense satisfaction. The smallest baby survived in our NICU was 630 grams of 26 weeks, which is only possible at the best centres.
Our cardiology department is doing an excellent job by saving heart attack patients who manage to reach hospital in time. There have been many occasions when a heart attack patient reached hospital in the dead of the night and our dedicated team of doctors and support staff did an excellent job to save a life.
Our pediatric cardiology department routinely operates on congenital heart defects. A baby 3 months old was operated for surgical closure of PDA. This procedure was done at a 70% lesser cost than what it would have cost outside Kashmir.
All this keeps us motivated to do even better and keep saving lives.

What advice would you give to aspiring healthcare entrepreneurs in Kashmir?
The Healthcare sector is capital-intensive and requires a lot of planning and expertise. My advice to aspiring healthcare entrepreneurs would be to have a patient-centric approach if they want to succeed and make a difference in the healthcare sector in Kashmir.