The Indo-American Chamber of Greater Houston & Indian Doctor’s Association hosted the Business of Medicine lecture featuring, CEO and Executive Dean of Baylor College of Medicine Dr. Paul Klotman on May 1st at the DoubleTree Hilton – Greenway Plaza.
Executive Director Jagdip Ahluwalia opened the event by welcoming the attendees and thanked them for the continued support to the chamber and the community. President Swapan Dhairyawan, shared that the Latin term “com” in commerce means coming together, establishing the purpose of the event, to bring the esteemed people in the medical field and other services together.
Dr. Klotman discussed the ever-evolving nature of the Health/Medical Education and the changes observed in the previous years, leading it to the present ecosystem of medial commerce. The modern academic center, inspired form the John Hopkins Medical School Model, has integrated various levels of education, research, clinical care and even community service. He described at length the unique challenges in each of the different revenue streams, education and research. Dr. Klotman described the challenges in education in the medical industry for the prospective millennial students and in research, with respect to uncertainty in funding, red-tapism and bureaucracy, uncertain recoveries and lack of support from private sectors. He also elaborated on the economic activities of Baylor University and broke it down into a simplified equation to incorporate all sources of income and expenditure, including cross subsidization. The note included the plans and concerns of the future financial health, and emphasis on the diversification to remain relevant and competitive in the future. He emphasized on the requirement on acquiring funds beyond the NIH, corporate relationships, joint ventures and Philanthropy in efforts to stay sustainable.
Baylor College of Medicine has created over tens of thousands of jobs in Houston alone. It has an annual impact of $4.5 Billion in Texas and $3.2 Billion in Houston. The research in Baylor College of Medicine has had a widespread impact on the community. The alumni also have a major influence in the community. There are nine thousand licensed physicians from the university throughout the United States. There are four thousand practicing alumni in Texas which account for 10% of the entire work force, and two thousand five hundred physicians in Harris County. Dr. Klotman concluded the speech with his thoughts that although medicine is still a profession, healthcare is a business. The event concluded with IDA and IACCGH representatives giving Dr Klotman a token of appreciation and an engaging Q&A session.
