THE EDITORIAL

Address,Innovation and technological advancements havecontributed a lot to the society. We can see theimplementation of scientific advancements leading toeradication of diseases and improving lives. With improvedlives the average life span of an individual is increasing.However owing to the lifestyle changes problems related toage are cropping up. Today people suffer from ailments of age and a dedicated segment towards this is seen comingup which is orthopaedics. Not only does this aid the elderlygeneration but also promises a new opportunity to India asa country. These devices have contributed a lot to medicaltourism. The Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) isseen to help this by promoting healthcare tourism as acomponent of Brand India. Considering this we dedicatethe September issue of The PUMBA Gazette toorthopaedics.In agreement with this, a survey has been carried out by thestudents to assess the number of joint replacementsurgeries conducted in Pune and people hailing from theadjoining districts.We also bring to you an article on BiotechnologyConsultancies which have been a word of the mouth quietrecently.This issue also covers one of the 12 part series of the CSRactivities undertaken by Lupin Pharmaceuticalsheadquartered in Mumbai.In the BT news section an attempt has been made toanalyze the outcomes of medical tourism in India.We also present an exclusive interview with Mr. SanjayLohani, all India marketing head of Zimmer India Pvt Ltd, onbiomedical devices and an insight into this sector.A section upon the recent happenings in PUMBA has beenalso included.Your feedback and Suggestions are welcome atthepumbagazette@gmail.com

“To learn to read is to light a fire; every syllable that isspelled out is a spark.”—Victor Hugo

Sincerely Yours,

Chief Editor:

Queeny Bubna, MBA-BT (Sem III)(The PUMBA Gazette Team)(The detailed project report shall be provided onenquiry. Kindly send in your enquiries atthepumbagazette@gmail.com)

CONTENTS•

Cover Story 3

--JoinT Re(Place)ment

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Articles/Analysis 4

New Age Guides: Biotechnology Consultancy

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Back to Society 5

CSR initiative of LUPIN Pharmaceuticals

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BT News 6

Destination India

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Candid Talk 7

An Interview with Mr.Sanjay Lohani

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PUMBA News 8

Chapter Meet ‘09-- A seminar by Ms. Jessie Paul

JoinT Re(Place)ment

Joint replacement devices form a very major part of the IndianOrthopaedics market. Maharashtra itself is among the regions inIndia where a substantial number of joint replacement surgeriestake place every year. But the density of these surgeries is highestin Mumbai and Pune region in Maharashtra. The availability of specialized hospitals and surgeons in these cities has clusteredthis growing market, though a very substantial number of patientsbelong to places outside these cities i.e. from small towns likeSatara, Solapur, Kolhapur etc. To understand the dynamics of this,a survey was conducted in Pune to find out the demand potentialof interior Maharashtra (Satara, Solhapur, Kolhapur, Sangli,Ahmednagar & Aurangabad) for Orthopedic ReplacementSurgeries.The major players in this joint replacement market are J&J (DePuy), Zimmer, Stryker, Smith & Nephew, INOR. These companieshave a direct surgeon to surgeon relationship and it is completelythe surgeon’s discretion to use a product of his choice. As thesesurgeons mostly perform surgeries in Pune so patients from allnearby towns flock them for surgeries. But it is not always possiblefor people from these towns to come down to the city for surgeriesdue to following reasons:1) Mostly people of older age group (say above 50 years) requiresuch joint replacements. It becomes difficult for them to travel longdistances, hence most cases go untreated.2) The cost of travel and stay for patient and their accomplicebecomes expensive.3) Post surgery, regular checkups and physiotherapy sessions arerequired which makes it necessary for the patient to travel to andfro a number of times.Considering the problems of regions adjoining Pune this surveywas conducted to identify the approximate demand potential of these regions, which would help the orthopaedic companies tocome up with plans and strategies to bring down joint replacementsurgeries to these small towns. For this 25 major joint replacementsurgeons were interviewed from eminent hospitals like SanchetiJoint Replacement Centre, Deenanath Mangeshkar Hospital,Sahyadri Hospital, Hardikar Hospital, Poona Hospital, Ruby HallClinic, Jehangir Hospital, & Military Hospital Kirkee. Small clinicsand specialty units like Naik Hospital and Ranka Hospital werealso surveyed.Out of the surgeons surveyed, 72% confirmed of performing jointreplacement surgeries, among these around 22% of the surgeonsperformed trauma or spine or both along with joint replacementsurgeries and 24% of surgeons performed only trauma. It was alsoobserved that most patients from regions outside Pune came for joint replacement surgeries rather than trauma or spine.As far as the popularity of the brand of orthopaedic devices usedis concerned, it was seen that seldom, a doctor was dependent onone particular company though some surgeons were loyal to aparticular brand. The brand preference of surgeons can bedepicted from the

Fig 1.

The preference of products among surgeons was governed bythree major factors first being ‘perceived quality’, 100% of thesurgeons emphasized on quality of the product while choosing abrand; among them 96% considered only quality whereas theremaining 4% considered price and compliance before selecting aproduct. In Pune approximately 3000-3500 surgeries take place ina year. Considering regions outside Pune the incidence of patientsfrom the four major regions Satara, Solapur- Kolhapur -Sangli,Ahmednagar & Aurangabad can be observed in

Fig.2

. Out of the3000-3500 surgeries conducted every year around 30-35%surgeries are conducted on patients from regions outside Pune.Among the surgeries outside Pune, 58% is contributed by twomajor regions i.e. Satara and Solapur-Kolhapur-Sangli. Thus thesetwo regions have quite a high demand potential and can be a verylucrative unexplored market for all orthopaedic companies.Though all surgeons operate within Pune, some of them alsooperate occasionally in Nagpur and Nasik region.An initiative by companies or hospitals to facilitate the travel of thesurgeons to these remote locations would be a welcome change.When asked about if such an initiative will help them, 100% of thesurgeons answered in an affirmative way. In fact they also supportthe proposal of satellite centres for surgeries in interior regions.The benefits the surgeons would reap from such initiatives wouldbe over and above mere monetary advantages like more scope &functional challenges and recognition and social service. Alsodoctors emphasized that the price of products has to be regulatedto tap low and medium income group people which actually residein most of these regions.Thus, there is a prodigious potential in the Satara and Sholapur,Kolhapur, Sangli regions which the companies can tap. Not only itwill be profitable from business point of view but will also serve asocial cause and aid the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)activities of the company thereby boosting their goodwill.Compiled by:Minal Ambre, Neha Maliwal, Snigdha Sinha,Shraddha Bakare, Tejal Ladkat. (MBA-BT, Sem I & III)