Representatives of the Republic of the Maldives on Saturday signed an agreement with Apollo Hospitals group to manage the Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital, in Male, its capital city.
As per the terms of the agreement, signed by Maldivian Health Minister Aminath Jaameel and Apollo Hospitals Managing Director Preetha Reddy, in the presence of Maldivian President Mohammed Nasheed, Apollo will run and manage the IGMH and facilitate its growth into a world class super speciality institute.
Over the next three months, Apollo will make an assessment of the needs and work on building super specialisations in orthopaedics, cardiology, gastroenterology, acute care and trauma for 18 months after that, Ms. Reddy said. In the second phase, the possibility of setting up a cancer unit will be examined. Both parties to the agreement will simultaneously look at education, establishing nursing schools in the Maldives initially, and at a later stage, even medical schools, she added.
A total of 25 million US dollars will be invested in the IGMH to finance the development process, President Nasheed said. The agreement with Apollo is to last for the next 20 years and Apollo will receive a management fee for services rendered. A state–sponsored insurance scheme will continue to fund the health care expenses of the Maldivians, he added.
