Chandigarh, April 25:
In yet another testament to the transformative vision of Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann-led Punjab Government for strengthening and transforming primary health care in the state, Aam Aadmi Clinics (AAC) have garnered international recognition, with a high-level 14-member Australian delegation expressing keen interest in adopting the model back home.
The delegation, led by Member of Parliament (MP) State of Victoria Dylon Wight (Delegation Leader) and MP State of Victoria Mathew Hilakari, visited the primary healthcare facility— Aam Aadmi Clinic and the tertiary healthcare facility— Punjab Institute of Liver and Biliary Sciences (PILBS) in Mohali on Friday.
Later, the delegation held a meeting with Punjab Health and Family Welfare Minister Dr Balbir Singh where they exchanged ideas on healthcare and agriculture. Administrative Secretary Health and Family Welfare Kumar Rahul, Special Secretary Agriculture Baldeep Kaur and Director PILBS Dr Virendra Singh also attended the meeting.
The Australian representatives were particularly impressed by the Aam Aadmi Clinic model, which offers free primary healthcare services, including 80 essential medicines and 38 diagnostics, close to people’s homes.
Dr Balbir Singh, while addressing the media, said that the delegation has lauded the efforts of state in providing affordable, accessible, and quality healthcare to its citizens. “The delegation was amazed to see that by 11 AM, over 60 patients had already availed services at the Aam Aadmi Clinic. They were so impressed that they want to take this model back to Australia, believing it could greatly benefit their healthcare system.”
The Health Minister said that the delegation also appreciated Punjab’s tertiary healthcare facility, PILBS, for providing cost-effective advanced treatment to patients. The delegates were keen on learning from Punjab’s healthcare reforms, especially the efficient last-mile delivery of medical services.
The discussions also extended to agriculture and environmental sustainability, with both sides exploring potential collaborations. “Australia shares similar climatic conditions and crop patterns with Punjab. They showed great interest in our millets and organic farming practices. We discussed how both regions can learn from each other to boost agricultural productivity while conserving water and reducing pollution,” said Dr Balbir Singh.
The Health Minister said that Punjab is looking forward to launch exchange programs with Australia, where experts from Punjab will visit Australia for training, and Australian professionals will come to Punjab to study its healthcare and agricultural models.
Meanwhile, this acknowledgment from an international delegation follows the recent global recognition received by Aam Aadmi Clinics at the Global Health Supply Chain Summit held in Nairobi in 2023, where Punjab had received first prize for its submission titled “Strengthening last mile delivery of drugs: A case study from Punjab”.
Other delegate members include Professor Harpinder Sandhu (Federation University Australia); Dr Jasvinder Sidhu (Federation University Australia; A/Prof Paul Pang (Federation University Australia); Dr Sachin Dahiya (Business Leader, Ballarat); Parvinder Sarwara (Businessman & CEO, Singh Homes); Davinder Singh (Businessman and Importer); Sukhmeet Ahuja (Businessman and Educator); Jaswinder Singh (CEO, Sikh Volunteers Australia); Abhimanyu Kumar (Businessman); Navdeep Singh Handa (Businessman, CEO Aamico Homes); Kartheek Munigoti (CEO, Constellation Technologies Limited); and Love Khakh (Businessman and Sports Events Organizer).
