R. Hari Ramesh has developed a unique medical scheme to cater to senior citizens whose children live abroad. Prince Frederick catches up with the general physician and geriatrician
R. Hari Ramesh is rudely woken up in the middle of the night by the piercing ring of his cellphone. The caller is in panic. Speaking in accented English, he says “Doc, there is an emergency at home. My mom is not answering my calls. I am worried!” Dr. Hari checks on the old lady who lives in Chennai with a fulltime helper and reports to her anxious NRI son: “She is fine. She was sleeping too soundly to hear the phone. The helper is on a day's leave.”
Dr. Hari is not upset by the false alarm. Like many others, this NRI has paid him a retainer to keep a watch on his parent in Chennai. The service includes carrying out a variety of medical check-ups and also attending to emergencies. The general physician and geriatrician has built a unique medical practice, catering to ‘NRI parents' around Adyar and Thiruvanmiyur by entering into annual medical contracts.
For a fixed sum of $ 1000 per annum, Dr. Hari and his team will regularly visit senior citizens signed on the programme and conduct a series of tests (including ECG, blood sugar, blood pressure), supervise the intake of prescribed drugs (if necessary) and conduct master health check-ups. The package includes a 24-hour doctor-on-call and ambulance service, and the online relay of the health status of these patients to their NRI children.
The health package was born out of the concerns frequently voiced by NRI children of Dr. Hari's patients. The doctor sensed a demand for it around 12 years ago. While he has been accepting requests for a 24/7 care of such senior citizens for many years now, it is only recently that it evolved into a comprehensive medical service scheme, which he calls ‘Home Health Care'. While his medical programme remains committed to its original goal of serving aged parents of NRIs, it also caters to other seniors. “We also offer packages tailored for the slightly different needs faced by senior citizens whose children are with them.”
Dr. Hari admits that he is not building on an original concept. He traces his work to what is well-entrenched in Indian society: the idea of the family physician.
“What we do basically is go to the patient and take care of him/her, but we have added newer dimensions to this familiar concept to address the complications of modern life, one of which is aged parents living alone. It is only going to get more complicated in the future. In 2020, the biggest socio-medico-economic problem in India is not going to be HIV-AIDS or tuberculosis or any other condition. It's going to be old age. As a result of medical advancements, life expectancy in India keeps going up. When people live longer, they tend to develop degenerative conditions that make them dependant on others.”
Dr. Hari is convinced that preventive or prophylactic pre-paid care of the aged is the model of the future. Given its rich potential, he persists with it despite encountering certain problems while practising it. “Often, the opposition to this model comes from the patients themselves. The majority of seniors don't warm up to the idea of being visited by a doctor when they are not in any form of distress. The service often serves the goal of preventive care, which is lost on most seniors.”
The NRI children have, however, extended rock-solid support to Dr. Hari. One of them, Raghu Ram, wants the doctor to take this service to the other parts of the city and is willing to work with him towards this end. The plan involves introducing this service in other localities, including Mylapore, T. Nagar, Kodambakkam, Nungambakkam, Velachery and Anna Nagar. “From Anna Nagar to Adyar” is how Dr. Hari refers to this initiative. Among the features planned to be added to the care of the aged are home monitoring gadgets — including geo-fencing aids and warning relay instruments — and advanced electronic medical records.
Dr. Hari is also indirectly spreading this model beyond Chennai. “Doctors in Mumbai and Delhi have contacted me and inquired about this model and I have only been too glad to help them adopt it. It's not good to keep a good thing confined to a city.”
Children – primarily NRIS– pay an annual amount for the medical care of their parents
*A pre-set list of medical check-ups are carried out for these seniors
*The team attends to medical emergencies of these seniors
*Children are regularly updated about the health status of their aged parents
This is a good service. Please provide phone/email id, contact details.
Thanks.
The concept is great and very timely. There is need for more such schemes to protect the elderly who are here while their children are away across the oceans! I wish to contact the Doctor urgently and need his contact details. Can the same be emailed to me please? Thanks
This concept needs to be expanded to include all senior citizens, irrespective of their financial background. Dr Hari Ramesh could think of periodical visits to the homes of senior citizens registered with him may be for a nominal fee or in deserving cases without charging fees. He can bring in volunteers ( doctors and donors) to put such a scheme in motion.
Can someone provide the contact details of Dr. Hari Ramessh?
let me know the annual fees for indian senior residents and pattern
of looking after the elder parents
This is a good idea. The scheme should be avialable for old NRI "s parents and also for the senior citizens in India who can afford to join the scheme.
Please provide contact information (phone number, email id ) of Dr. Hari
so that we can contact him. This indeed is a great Service especially
for NRIs who cannot be there for their elderly parents. For those who
live with or near their parents, they have the option of taking care of
their parent's need. Thank you
As a NRI whose parents are considering making the move back to India, I am not sure if this is really the service I want. I can understand the need for such a service or rather a care-taker if my parents relocate to a city where we do not have relatives. In terms of actual healthcare, I believe regular visits to the doctors is suffice. What I as a NRI would like is for there to be a reputable laboratory service as well as doctors who have perhaps finished their residency in the US. While there is a difference in opinion between doctors everywhere in the world, I find there to be a remarkable discrepancy in opinion between doctors in India.
Good service but please think about non-NRI parents. NRIs can afford the $1000 hence the preference but to neglect Indian senior citizens is a travesty. Do something about parents living in one city and children in another indian city or for that matter parents who are abandoned by their children.
pl. provide the telephone no/email id of the doctor so that we can get in touch with him.
It is a great service. My friends use a similar service provided by India Home Health Care. They have offices in Chennai and Bangalore.
It is great that people like Dr. Hari care for the elderly.
This article provides a mass advertisement to Dr.Hari and his scheme.If your ready to pay up exorbitant amount any doctor would be willing. I suggest "The Hindu" not to promote suggest such ideas if it doesn't benefit the poor.NRI's have better options to choose from.
This is indeed a wonderful concept and service Dr. Hari is providing. Can Mr. Frederick please share Dr. Hari's contact info? I have aged parents in Chennai, and this would be a great way for me to help them.
@ PKMS Ramamurthy , plz read this “We also offer packages tailored for the slightly different needs faced by senior citizens whose children are with them.”
This is a welcome move. Some well-to-do parents living in India might be willing to pay for this service by themselves. In addition to routine doctor calls and medical tests, it would be ideal if the cost of medicines and full hospitalization costs including surgeries could be covered by additional fixed amounts payable by the senior citizens or their children (NRIs or otherwise).
Ok for NRI old age parents what about other old age parents please think about. May I suggest with out medicine of Acupuncture treatment. Please keep in your mind and do some thing for the non NRI old Age Parents also. God will help us and do some thing through You.
With prayer for the best.
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