Ankura Hospitals: Focused Healthcare For Women, Children
Starting as 70-bedded facility with 150 staff in 2012, it has emerged as a healthcare chain of total 10 hospitals (1,400 beds) in Hyd and 5 in other States with headcount over 4,000
Ankura Hospitals: Focused Healthcare For Women, Children
Two decades back in Hyderabad, dedicated hospitals for women and children were very few. Subsequently, the growth of IT sector had gained traction here, bringing in potential demand for providing mother and childcare facilities under one roof - Dr Krishna Prasad Vunnam, Founder and MD, Ankura Hospital
Hyderabad: Ankura Hospitals for Women and Children is a healthcare chain specialising in super-specialty tertiary and quaternary care for women and children. What began as a 70-bedded facility with 150 employees and in-house doctors at KPHB, Hyderabad, in 2012, has grown into a hospital chain of total 10 hospitals in the city, and five in other States.
At present, Ankura Hospital has a capacity of over 1,400 beds spread across Telangana (Hydera-bad, Khammam), Andhra Pradesh (Vijayawada, Tirupati), Maharashtra (Pune), and Odisha (Bhubaneswar). With a team of over 400 in-house doctors and a total workforce exceeding 4,000 employees, Ankura provides specialised and comprehensive healthcare for women and children. The initially bootstrapped hospital later raised investments (undisclosed amount) from PE firm InvAscent that manages India Life Sciences Fund-III.
“After getting MBBS degree, I received training in neonatology in Australia. After returning back to India, I found a gap in the services provided and patients’ needs. Moreover, two decades back in Hyderabad, dedicated hospitals for women and children were very few. Subsequently, the growth of IT sector had gained traction here, bringing in the potential demand for providing mother and childcare facilities under one roof,” says Dr Krishna Prasad Vunnam, Founder and Managing Director, Ankura Hospitals.
Noticing non-availability of world-class infrastructure in the pediatric and women’s care in Hy-derabad, Dr Vunnam utilised his knowledge gained in Australia to bring in sophisticated infra-structure and empanelment of super-specialised doctors into the Group for providing best in care service to patients. Ankura Hospitals has been growing y-o-y at a rate of 25-30 per cent, he in-formed without disclosing the revenue figures.
Ankura recently secured Rs165 crore in funding from the Asian Development Bank (ADB). The funding is said to be utilised to expand footprint. New centers will be launched in Maharashtra, eastern and central regions of India, over the next two years. The five new hospitals will add 500 beds, workforce of about 1,200 – 1,300 employees, along with a combination of 100–150 in-house and visiting doctors.
“We had earlier acquired only one hospital in Kompally. We have established the remaining 14 hospitals on our own. Going forward, depending on the opportunity a particular city presents, we will take a call on whether to acquire or own a hospital,” Dr Vunnam informed.
Ankura Hospital has dedicated advanced level-3 NICU, advanced level-3 PICU, and advanced OTs, for neonatal pediatric medical care. When asked about the factors that have led to the success of the hospital chain, Dr Vannum said: “When it comes to medical expertise, Ankura has engaged the topmost doctors to provide spe-cialised treatments. Secondly, patient experience is well taken care of. The infrastructure and am-bience has been created, keeping in mind the needs of a pregnant woman and child.”
