In line with its commitment to aiding neighbourhood groups' growing healthcare needs, Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM) built a Primary Health Centre (PHC) in Byramangala in 2019 under the CSR initiative. This PHC was acknowledged as one of Karnataka's top public healthcare facilities in terms of excellent requirements by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, New Delhi, in January 2024.

The PHC placed in Byramangala in Ramanagara District underwent a rigorous pleasant assessment and certification under the National Quality Assurance Standards (NQAS) Program, scoring an excellent 90.08% in the evaluation from November 8-9, 2023.

Initiated with the aid of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, the NQAS Program targets to improve offerings in India's public health facilities by imparting hints for district hospitals, network fitness centres, number one health centres, and concrete primary fitness centres. This certification affirms that TKM's initiative is aligned with the authorities' awareness of delivering splendid healthcare services to nearby communities.

State-of-the-Art Healthcare Facility

With an investment of about Rs. 35 million, TKM built a 439 sq—meter facility based on the Indian Public Health Standards (IPHS) suggestions. The newly built PHC was inaugurated on September 19, 2019, with trendy scientific gadgets and advanced healthcare facilities, serving the encompassing rural populace of over 20,000.

The facility includes a registration room, doctor consultation room, dressing room, immunization room, labour room & ward, laboratory, pharmacy, and general ward with six patient beds. Advanced healthcare equipment provided includes a fully automatic biochemistry analyzer, semi-auto analyzer, microscopes, ECG machine, patient monitors, infant warmer equipment, delivery beds, emergency crash cart, autoclave sterilizer, pulse oximeter, glucometer, dressing sets, delivery sets, oxygen concentrators, weighing machines, among others. Healthcare services provided encompass general OPD, immunizations, emergency care, institutional deliveries, specialist health camps, inpatient care, and diagnostics.

Beyond Healthcare Infrastructure

While TKM has provided advanced healthcare infrastructure, it believes sustainable community health necessitates going beyond physical infrastructure. The PHC has built strong ties with the local community through regular health and wellness initiatives, focusing on health education and disease prevention.

Health training programs are often performed at schools and community regions using the PHC group of workers to elevate recognition of personal hygiene, sanitation, government health schemes, adolescent Health, Sexual Health, substance abuse prevention, and non-communicable sicknesses. Preventive health check-up camps are prepared for faculty children, teens, pregnant and lactating moms. Outreach sports are carried out to improve immunization coverage. 

The PHC group follows up with sufferers at home to ensure adherence to treatment plans. Aasha/Anganwadi employees and school teachers are skilled in critical Health, nutritional wishes, hygiene requirements, and contamination manipulation. The centre also collaborates with local self-assist businesses and network leaders to co-create health answers for the village.

Impact Created

Previously, villagers had to travel nearly 10 km over poor road connectivity to Ramanagara town for basic healthcare needs, which was unaffordable for many. The local PHC eases access to essential health services provided cashless for rural families. This is reflected in the steady rise in outpatients from 8,720 in 2019-20 to 11,450 in 2022-23. Institutional deliveries also increased from 432 to 576 during the same period, reducing maternal mortality.

The increased delivery rate in the PHC vis-a-vis home births has reduced neonatal and maternal mortality rates. The fully equipped labour room handles complications adequately, improving survival rates. Regular outreach activities have increased immunization coverage from 62% to 90% in children under five, driving down infant and child mortality rates. Overall, the PHC has contributed significantly to the reduction of mortality rates, disease burden, and malnutrition among women and children.

Easy access to doctor consultations and medicines near home has led to a multi-fold increase in OPD footfall from zero. Medicines are provided free of cost without patients having to run around, further improving compliance. Diagnostic tests are also carried out in the well-equipped lab, again cashless, driving up test volumes from zero. This has reduced the out-of-pocket expenditure of villagers multiple-fold.

Short waiting time, personalized attention from doctors and staff, zero expense for consultations, clean surroundings, and perceived quality have contributed to patient satisfaction levels of over 80%, as revealed in patient surveys. Many also appreciate the regular patient education and community health initiatives enhancing health awareness.

Beyond clinical Health, the PHC's community outreach spanning health education in schools and villages has contributed to improved health awareness, especially related to hygiene, sanitation, substance abuse, sexual health, and non-communicable diseases. Higher alertness has increased healthy habits among local citizens, curtailing risk factors that could lead to lifestyle diseases.

For rural households, earlier, each basic health need - a doctor consultation, buying medicines, or diagnostic tests involving significant travel and high out-of-pocket spending - acted as deterrents for many low-income families. By providing comprehensive primary healthcare cashless, the PHC has contributed to substantial savings through reduced travel, lower treatment costs, and loss of daily wages.

While the PHC meets the majority of primary care needs of the local community seamlessly, patients requiring advanced tertiary care are efficiently referred via ambulances to preferred care centres in Ramanagara, Bangalore, or Mysore, also cashless and covered under government schemes or Toyota Kirloskar Motor funds. The centre maintains robust coordination across the healthcare ecosystem, facilitating continued care.

The launch of PHC has created new livelihood opportunities for doctors, nurses, and support staff, besides bringing allied economic activity to the region via increased footfalls. Local pharmacies have witnessed higher business. Villagers also save potential loss from workdays previously spent seeking care outside.

The National Quality Assurance Certification awarded by the Ministry of Health, Government of India, serves as validation by external agencies affirming quality standards on par with urban healthcare facilities. This builds further confidence in the quality and credibility of the PHC amongst citizens. The centre also maintains robust documentation and transparency in operations.

Aligning to Sustainable Development Goals

On assessing the positive impact generated by the Byramangala PHC, one sees significant alignment with the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals or UN SDGs, which serve as a blueprint to achieve a better world by 2030. The intervention touches on many aspects of SDG 3 about Good Health and well-being, spanning improvements in maternal health, reductions in mortality rates, increased immunizations, access to essential healthcare services, and awareness programs related to lifestyle diseases and substance abuse. 

Investments into upgrading primary healthcare infrastructure and community health align strongly with SDG targets under Health. Easing access to primary care coupled with free medicines and diagnostics aligns with the SDG objective of reducing the number of people impoverished due to healthcare expenses.

The project also aligns with SDG 17, which is focused on partnerships, given Toyota's collaboration with Ramanagara District Health Department under the public-private partnership (PPP) model in service delivery. Toyota Kirloskar Motor's continued focus on community healthcare helps advance India's progress towards the SDGs.

Looking Ahead

After the immense success of the Byramangala PHC project, Toyota Kirloskar Motor continues to look for opportunities to uplift healthcare infrastructure and services for communities around its geographic presence. Some of the recent initiatives include a Community Health Centre in Bidadi, Karnataka, with an exclusive oxygen-generating plant delivering specialized care. 

Additionally, school-based health and hygiene programs like ABCD (A Behavioral Change Demonstration), the installation of water purification units, and the Toyota Shaale Arogya Program have significantly enhanced health outcomes within communities around Toyota's manufacturing plants. In the fiscal year 2022-23 alone, TKM positively impacted over 64,000 individuals, contributing to a cumulative outreach of more than 11,16,365 people.