KAMPALA, UGANDA – The Ministry of Health has praised C-Care for its commitment to patient-centered care, citing the private healthcare provider as a model for excellence in the industry. Speaking at the C-Care Excellence Awards held at the Kampala Serena Hotel on Saturday evening, Dr. Diana Atwiine, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Health, commended C-Care for prioritizing patient needs and delivering exceptional care.
“Patient-centeredness is the foundation of our profession, and C-Care embodies this value,” Dr. Atwiine said. “Their commitment to excellence and empathy is a shining example for all healthcare providers. You can never put your services on patient-centeredness and not prosper. That one I’m 100% sure.”
Dr. Atwiine emphasized the importance of private sector players in the health docket, saying, “The government is unable to meet all health requirements, but you shield us by closing the gaps and lessening our burden. We treasure the private sector because it contributes 45% of healthcare services.” She noted that up to 45% of Ugandans access healthcare from private sector providers, adding, “I was amazed to know that you (C-Care) see 38,000 patients monthly. That’s massive. It takes good service to attract all those numbers. You have passed the litmus paper test for quality because you wouldn’t be getting 38,000 people per month in your different clinics if the service wasn’t of quality.”
Dr. Atwiine announced that her ministry has introduced a client feedback mechanism designed to allow patients to rate Ministry of Health services and provide feedback through a QR code portal. “This innovative approach will enable us to identify areas for improvement and ensure that we are delivering patient-centered care,” she explained. The QR feedback mechanism will be rolled out across public healthcare facilities, allowing patients to scan a code and provide feedback on their experience.
C-Care IMC serves over 450,000 patients annually through a network of 20 clinics, including 5 admission facilities across Uganda, and employs over 300 health professionals. The Excellence Awards are part of C-Care’s ongoing efforts to provide high-quality healthcare services, focusing on innovation, efficiency, and patient-centered care.
Mr. Guillaume Dalais, CEO of CIEL Group, the mother company owning C-Care called on his team to embrace innovation and sustainability as the company looks to the future.
Dalais emphasized the need for the company to continue delivering value creation and excellence in all its operations.
He emphasized the importance of delivering customer satisfaction and financial discipline, while also making a positive impact on the communities where the company operates.
Andrew Mugalu, General Manager of C-Care IMC, highlighted that operational excellence is the cornerstone of C-Care’s approach. “It’s about delivering exceptional care to every patient, beyond just efficiency. This means promptly addressing patient concerns, maintaining immaculate facilities, and serving clients with compassion and speed. Our goal is to make our clinics easily accessible and ensure a seamless, positive experience throughout the patient journey.”
To ensure the awards’ integrity, C-Care IMC partnered with KPMG, a leading audit firm, to conduct a comprehensive and objective audit of all facilities.
KPMG’s thorough assessment evaluated operational excellence initiatives and provided a detailed performance report, validating the results and identifying areas for improvement.
The awards recognized excellence across various categories, including Service Excellence, Facility Operations, Human Resources, Pharmacy, Nursing Protocols, Branding, and Financial Performance.
These categories encompass the key aspects of C-Care’s operational excellence framework, each crucial to delivering a consistent and exceptional patient experience.
Azhar Sundhoo, CEO of C-Care Uganda, emphasized that the awards not only recognize individual and team achievements but also aim to cultivate a culture of continuous improvement within the organization. “As we celebrate these accomplishments, let us remember that our journey doesn’t end here. The healthcare landscape is constantly evolving, and we must continue to innovate, adapt, and improve. Let us draw inspiration from tonight’s celebrations and channel it into further enhancing our services, ensuring we remain at the forefront of healthcare excellence in Uganda.”
Care’s operational excellence initiative, launched in January, seeks to instill a culture of excellence and innovation throughout the network, encouraging staff to strive for the highest standards in healthcare delivery at all patient touchpoints. A notable achievement of this initiative is the successful implementation of a comprehensive patient feedback system across all C-Care IMC facilities. This system, featuring real-time pulse surveys and automated feedback collection, has significantly enhanced patient satisfaction monitoring, prompt concern resolution, and overall quality of care. As a result, patient issues are resolved more efficiently, service delivery has improved, and patient experience has reached a higher standard across the network.
The C-Care IMC Uganda annual Operational Excellence Awards celebrated the outstanding achievements of clinics across the C-Care IMC network. This prestigious award program recognized the exemplary efforts of seven facilities that have successfully implemented operational excellence programs, strategies, processes, systems, and tools to enhance the standardization of patient experience.
The winners of each category were: IMC Ntinda for Service Excellence, IMC Kololo for Nursing Excellence, IMC IDC for HR/People Excellence, IMC Nansana for Facility Excellence, IMC Mbarara for Pharmacy Excellence, and IMC Kireka for both Billing and Credit Control and Efficiency/Financial Excellence.
IMC Ntinda received the Overall Excellence Award.
