Friday, February 23, 2018

Bangalore Baptist Hospital - A Bangalore Hospital with a difference

Bangalore Baptist Hospital (BBH in short) is a hospital with certain unique character traits that sets it apart from other hospitals in Bangalore. Don't get me wrong, I'm not, by any chance trying to say that it as a flawless, model hospital for other hospitals to follow. Admittedly it has it's share of faults and recently I personally gave them a bit of the stick as a Local Guide for Google Maps in Bangalore after discovering some. You can view the lashing given in my review in Maps here -> my BBH review . However, if fault-tolerant pursuit of perfection (in which one is continuously learning from and correcting one's faults) is an admirable practical goal, then you may like to read on and know more about BBH.

Signboard displaying milestones crossed during 45 years of BBH
Modern F&B Cafeteria
Age Well Clinic (for seniors)


BBH is a Christian missionary hospital that has recently completed 45 years of existence. Being a hospital that seeks to showcase God at work in healing & healthcare, it has a unique atmosphere when compared to other hospitals in the city that are "for profit". Needless to say, under constant pressure from managements to use all possible methods to generate profits, doctors in the majority of "for profit" hospitals are guilty of subjecting patients to several unnecessary tests and investigations, merely to inflate bills. Sadly, the tacit profit motive makes quite a number of these doctors neglect true patient-care issues, particularly if they are not well-to-do, resulting in poor healthcare and in quite some cases avoidable health complications and even death. I also believe that over time, aligning with the profit motive makes doctors work less harder and makes them greedy for higher pay and benefits. 

Charitable/ mission hospitals, on the other hand, by freeing doctors of such money-linked evils help them truly focus on serious patient-care. You have doctors/ medical staff who are continuously learning, working hard, keen on professional excellence, healing and cure and happy overall. It also makes a world of difference from a patient's point of view i.e. care and satisfaction that results from transparency about the treatment being given, no waste of time and money on useless investigations and finally, the lowest bills for a given level of quality of medical care. That's exactly the uniqueness of BBH (and other mission hospitals in Bangalore) that I'm talking about.

Quality of Medical care at BBH is usually above average and in quite some cases, very good to excellent. However, I had some serious complaints when I lived in the hospital as an in-patient's attender recently (8-11 Feb, 2018). For example, basic amenities in wards/ beds that are not considered expensive (i.e. costing not more than ₹5000/= per day) were miserably inadequate (till 11-Feb-2018) at least - no convenient storage space, no wall mirrors, no clothes hooks on walls etc. Quality/ accuracy of medical care provided by one Department (Orthopaedics) was just above average. Ward security was lax. Coordination between medical and non-medical Departments was poor and so on. 

When I confronted the hospital's senior management with the above complaints, I expected the usual stiff resistance, denials, insincere explanations & promises. Consequently, I was amazed when I was received positively! The management did not deny their just shortcomings but agreed to investigate sincerely and correct themselves suitably.

The honest, sporting attitude of the management completely reversed my feelings of animosity! It bowled me over because it was the kind of response that I was least expecting that I actually got !! And that too, from the kind of medical big-wigs that head BBH's senior management !!!


Just as it is true in real life that you simply can't help loving a sporting co-worker whom you accuse often yet responds positively, not getting hostile when you accuse but responding in a fair&responsible manner, I have started becoming friendly with BBH 
again. Although I yet need to see what corrective measures have been put in place in response to my complaints, I have deep appreciation and praise for the kind of understanding and immediate responsiveness I got from BBH's management.

To conclude, I would highly recommend BBH to you for medical care in Bangalore(*). It is unique in that: 

  • You get quality medical care at the lowest (comparable) cost in Bangalore. 
  • BBH is both NABH & NABL accredited. 
  • They have all medical departments
  • All the latest high-tech medical gadgets
  • Doctors in general are excellent and not being burdened with having to produce profits for paychecks, genuinely give you the kind of care you deserve. 
  • Medical staff who genuinely care for you
  • Being partly an academic institution for doctors, nurses and other medical staff, it can be expected to be at par on the healthcare learning curve, so that one can expect to receive the very latest in medical treatment available in India at any point of time.
  • You won't have to waste time and money on useless investigations and tests - that means the shortest stay at the hospital and and a low, honest bill. 
  • If you feel strongly about anything (like I did) you can complain to a mature, responsive management and expect to get your complaint redressed!


HICU (High Intensity Care Unit)
Main Hospital Pharmacy
ELS & Utility Shops


(*) - As there are several other mission hospitals in the city (notably Chinmaya Mission Hospital, Vydehi Hospital etc.), surely, I would have been able to write a better review after evaluating a representative sample of all mission hospitals in the city and making an unbiased comparison. If I have time and opportunity, I will do so sometime in future. As on date (23-Feb-2018), apart from BBH, I have only used Vydehi Hospital, Whitefield and the exposure I have is too little to use for purposes of an evaluation, so a comprehensive review (BBH & other mission hospitals) won't be possible until sometime later.





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