Dr. Devi Prasad Shetty MS, FRCS (England)
Chairman and Director of Narayana Health
Dr. Devi Shetty, is an India-born doctor and cardiac surgeon. He began his career with the Guys Hospital in London working for the National Health Service, United Kingdom, with whom he was associated till 1989. Subsequently, on his return to India, he started working at the BM Birla Heart Research Centre in Kolkata, where he was involved in the treatment of Mother Teresa. His involvement with Mother Teresa had a deep impact on him resulting in his becoming her disciple. Thereafter, he moved to Bengaluru to commission the Manipal Heart Foundation. He founded a chain of super-specialty hospitals which includes the Rabindranath Tagore International Institute of Cardiac Sciences in Kolkata and Narayana Health City in Bengaluru. Currently, Narayana Health Group of Hospitals manages 23 hospitals across 14 cities.
Dr. Shetty and his team pioneered the concept of a ‘Health City’, a 2000-5000 bed conglomeration of multiple super- specialty hospitals within a single campus. The economies of scale achieved through this health city enable the Group to provide affordable healthcare to thousands. Dr. Shetty was also involved in coining the term ‘Micro Health Insurance’. He spearheaded the launch of a health insurance for the farmers of Karnataka in association with the State Government.
In addition to his administrative and medical commitments with the Narayana Health Group, Dr. Shetty served on the Board of Governors of the Medical Council of India, an apex body regulating medical education in India. His activities are profiled in several international publications like the Wall Street Journal, which referred to him as the ‘Henry Ford of cardiac surgery’ in a cover page article of Forbes, Fortune and Business Week. Harvard Business School and Wharton Business School created a case study while reviewing Narayana Health’s unique business model.
Dr. Devi Shetty performed the first open-heart surgery in the world to close a hole in the heart using a microchip camera. He also conducted the first surgery in India using blood vessels of the stomach to bypass blocked arteries of the heart along with the first dynamic cardiomyoplasty operation in Asia. He was also the first to use the artificial heart in India. He has performed more than 13,000 operations (5,000 on children).
Awards, recognition and other accomplishments
Padma Bhushan in 2012 ‘The Economist Innovation Awards 2011’ for lowering mass-based healthcare costs Honorary Degree, University of Minnesota in 2011 Schwab Foundation's award in 2005 Padma Shri award for Medicine in 2004 Dr. B C Roy award in 2003 Sir M. Visvesvaraya Memorial Award in 2003 Ernst & Young - Entrepreneur Of The Year in 2003 Rajyotsava award in 2002 Karnataka Ratna award in 2001 The first heart surgeon in India to specialise in neo-natal open-heart surgery
