Gujarat-based healthcare provider Sterling Addlife India Ltd, which operates a chain of hospitals under Sterling Hospitals’ banner, has formed a joint venture with Indian Home Health Care (IHHC) to launch home healthcare services in Gujarat.
The JV will operate under the brand name of Asilia Home Healthcare.
“This is a geographically limited joint venture focused mainly on Gujarat and two other states,” said Sameer Mehta, founder, India Home Health Care.
Within Gujarat, the focus will be on Ahmedabad followed by Rajkot and Surat.
IHHC has been providing home healthcare services since 2009 and provides services in both clinical as well as non clinical value-added medical services from rehabilitation to hospice and wellness ranging for all age groups. It is backed by US-based Bayada which specialises in home healthcare.
As per the joint venture the services that would be provided will be nursing care, caregiver services, doctor’s consultation, lifestyle and diet counselling, yoga training, rehabilitative services, palliative care and more.
Girish Patel, chairman, Sterling Addlife India Ltd, said, “As per a global market research firm, international market for home healthcare is expected to cross $300 billion by 2018, whereas in India, the market size is pegged at about Rs 12,600 crore. At the same time, if seen with the Indian perspective, providing home health care service in a well organised manner is utmost necessary to maintain high standard of quality and being one of the leading hospitals in Gujarat, Sterling takes lead on this front.”
While The Economic Times said it is a 70:30 JV with Sterling having majority stake citing a senior executive, IHHC's Mehta said, “We do not want to disclose the stake holding of the company.”
Besides this, IHHC is evaluating other acquisitions and joint venture opportunities in other states.
Sterling Addlife India Ltd, owned by Girish Patel, who sold Paras Pharma to Reckitt Benckiser, manages Sterling Hospitals, a hospital chain in Gujarat with facilities in Ahmedabad, Vadodara, Rajkot and Bhavnagar. It provides multi-specialty tertiary care while the facility at Sterling Hospital, Adipur (Gandhidham) is a secondary care set-up.
It recently entered into the diagnostics business. Sterling Addlife has created a new firm Sterling Accuris Wellness Ltd which would provide radiology and pathology among other diagnostics services starting with its home state.
Sterling Addlife was previously backed by emerging markets private equity major Actis. Its stake was bought over by Patel.
A number of firms have entered home healthcare services including Portea Medical, which is owned by serial entrepreneur K Ganesh.
(Edited by Joby Puthuparampil Johnson)
