Dr. Jariwala Laboratory & Diagnostics: Delivering Excellent and Reliable Diagnostic Services

One of the most reputed diagnostic centres of Mumbai, Dr. Jariwala Laboratory & Diagnostics offers a wide range of routine and specialized tests in the field of Haematology, Biochemistry, Immunochemistry, Serology, Microbiology, Clinical Pathology, Histopathology and Cytology. In an interview with the Leader of Dr. Jariwala Laboratory & Diagnostics, Dr. Pratik Jariwala, gave some insightful answers highlighting the influences made by his company to take diagnostic services towards newfound heights.

1. Kindly brief us about the company.

Established in 1981 to provide high-quality diagnostic services to all classes of the population, Dr. Jariwala Laboratory & Diagnostics caters to patients across Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, and Thane.  Founded by Dr. Harshad Jariwala who himself is a Pathologist and Microbiologist, the organization’s name is synonymous with ‘Quality.’ The organization is both NABH certified and NABL ISO15189:2012 accredited and offers a wide range of services in the fields of Pathology, Radiology, Microbiology, Molecular Diagnostics, Home Health Care Services, and Preventive Diagnostics.

2. Please tell us something about the Leader who you want to showcase in this profile.

Dr. Pratik Jariwala is a second-generation pathologist now helming the affairs at Dr. Jariwala Laboratory & Diagnostics for the last 12 years. He is both a doctor and a management professional and has added to the legacy created by the Founder. With the introduction of several new technologies, Dr. Pratik has enhanced the scope of services offered by the organization many a fold and now offers services ranging from Routine Clinical Pathology to Molecular Diagnostics. Dr. Pratik has set the focus of the organization towards improving quality and reducing errors in their zone. He believes in competing with ‘Self’ to bring out the best in ‘Himself’, rather than countering competition in the diagnostic space. ‘What more can we do for a patient?’ is the question he keeps asking himself and his staff.

3. Your perspective about the Diagnostics industry In India

a) Diagnostics in India is changing and progressing at a very rapid pace. It is one of those few Industries which have grown in spite of the poor market conditions. Technological enhancements and increased availability in a wider geography has only increased its consumption on a larger scale. However, the growth with the routine and age-old methods seems to have stagnated. Newer methods with high-end specialized methodologies are growing at a very fast pace and are changing the face of healthcare and diagnostics.

b) Another important area is that of Home Healthcare Services which has shown good progress. Several patients today demand for doorstep services either due to inability to visit a diagnostic facility or just because they need it in the comfort of their homes. With increased paying capacity and faster service availability, Home Health services are only bound to grow.

4. Please describe the journey of your organization – inception, early days, challenges, achievements, milestones and much more.

The laboratory was founded on 6^th May 1981 as a humble start of providing affordable and high quality healthcare. Diagnostics in those days were restricted to manual procedures and crude methods. Procurement of materials and maintaining good quality with whatever means available was the biggest challenge. The later part of the 80’s saw the introduction of semi-automation in the form of basic cell counters and chemistry analyzers. The 90’s saw a transition from semi-automation to fully-automated instrumentation. Hormonal testing became available freely and Dr. Jariwala Laboratory was amongst the first labs in Northern Mumbai to be processing Hormonal tests within its scope. Several tests like Electrophoresis, coagulation studies, ELISAs were started.

The year 2000 onwards saw further progress; newer high end technologies HPLC, Immunofluorescence, Electrochemiluminescence etc. were started thus increasing the working capacity many fold. NABL Accreditation was achieved in 2008. 24 hr service was started towards the later half. Post-2010, the focus was towards an integrated workflow with a major boost to the use of Information technology. This era also saw the introduction of Molecular Diagnostics in the Laboratory and digitization of health records.

Presently, with a team of over 150 professionals, the laboratory generates over 2000 high- quality test results every day and functions round the clock.

5. Kindly describe in detail about your distinct services and products. 

a) Dr. Jariwala Laboratory and Diagnostics provides services like Blood and Haemoglobin testing, Hormones, Cancer Diagnosis, Cardiac markers, Infectious disease diagnosis, X-ray, ECG, Sonography, 2D-Echo and detection of DNA or RNA for specific conditions and Genetic testing. This is done through various sub-specialties like Hematology, Clinical Pathology, Biochemistry and Immunochemistry, Microbiology and Serology, Radiology and Molecular Diagnostics.

b) The laboratory specializes in Haemoglobinopathy testing which includes testing for Thalassaemia and other different types of Haemoglobins from Human blood.

c) Round the clock services are provided for emergency cases and hospitalized patients.

d) Home services for Pathology investigations along with portable X-ray and ECG facility is also offered for bed-ridden patients.

e) On the Preventive diagnostics front, we offer several comprehensive health packages to suit the needs of individuals of all ages with customized solutions also available.

6. What are your strategies to maintain a hassle-free work environment and measures for employee development? 

a) We believe in a simple strategy of ‘Doing the right thing while keeping it simple’. While constant improvement and up gradation is a norm, the management team does not believe in adopting complicated work processes to add any stress on our employees. Instead, such changes are left upon to automation and Information Technology to manage the more complicated areas.

b) There is a conscious effort to reduce paper consumption, reduce waste make the functioning as paper-free as possible. Internally, staff is trained to use minimum paper to avoid the stress of printing, writing, storing and disposing of paper. This also helps us to reduce waste. Patients too are provided with results by email and on our app so that a print is not required.

c) Several ongoing employee development programs are undertaken by the organization. These include:

• Regular training programs
• Motivation, Health and self-help programs for overall well being of individuals
• Up gradation and promotions with stepping up of responsibilities to enhance employee self-worth
• Gatherings, Celebrations and appreciations
• Employees are motivated to give Ideas, suggestions, opinions for improvement in all aspects of the organization.

7. How do you portray the challenges in terms of changing trends, market players and innovations happening in the Indian diagnostics industry? 

a) Diagnostics has always been a fast-changing industry. With an increase in automation and robotics now available, it is possible to cater to larger patient base and give out high-quality results in a shorter time. This has tremendously improved the speed in which healthcare can be delivered. More and more market players are now focusing on gathering more volumes and faster delivery of reports using these platforms.

b) The use of advanced softwares has not only made online reports possible but has also made a tremendous difference in quality improvement and better delivery of services. Gathering data and analytics of the data to identify diseases are now setting in as a major tool for better patient healthcare.

c) Innovations in Point-of-care and Home services too are picking up at a faster pace to serve patient needs to be catered at home and along the bed-side.

d) The major challenge lies in striking a balance between investing in these technologies while still maintaining affordability. 

8. Describe the unique solutions/products that make your company stand out amongst the rest 

a) Since the time of inception, our focus has always been on service and quality. A wide test menu including several high end investigations makes us stand out amongst our peers.

b) Availability of several emergency tests round the clock makes us a natural choice for patients and doctors during crisis.

c) In addition to these, we also provide Pathology, X-ray and ECG services at home to cater bedridden patients.

d) Finally, we help share the financial burden of ever increasing healthcare costs for chronically Ill, debilitated and financially weaker class of the society.

9. Share your views about the future of the Diagnostics Industry and also introduce us with your future endeavors.

a) The future belongs to innovations, quality, and service and to the one who keeps up with it. Patient needs are ever-increasing and more demanding at the same time. A synergy between information technology and innovative testing methods is where the future holds. This combined with a positive intent to serve will decide the progress of the Diagnostician and the diagnostic industry.

b) Our focus for the future will be multifactorial; maximizing the use of Information technology, gathering data, and making sense of the data to serve patients better, Preventive Healthcare and Home Healthcare.