Great Example of Social Enterprise Clinic

Here's a very good story which is worth reading....

Originated from: http://www.socialearth.org/the-true-story-of-how-a-poor-bangladeshi-rickshaw-puller-used-his-social-entrepreneurship

A poor Bangladeshi rickshaw puller used his social entrepreneurship spirit to start a clinic for the poor. Joynal Abedin still remembers the night 30 years ago when he saw his father die because there was no medical centre; the event caused him to vow to set up a medical facility. At that time the nearest hospital to his village in the northern Mymensingh district of Bangladesh was about 20km (12 miles) away.

Abedin had determination and a strong social entrepreneurship ambition which spurred him to head for Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, to create change. Being poor and like other migrants to the city, he started to pull a rickshaw to earn money. Rickshaw pullers are among the bottom rung of society and earn less than a dollar a day. This did not deter him; he soon opened a bank account to save money for the health clinic in his village. After he had saved more than $4,000 (£2,550), Mr Abedin returned to his village, where he bought a small plot of land with his savings. He built a tin roof house for himself and then built a shed for the clinic, which he equipped with a few tables and beds from the money he had left.

He named his clinic Mumtaz Hospital, and initially requested a paramedic to give first aid treatment. Soon news spread about his clinic and villagers came for basic treatment. Now a regular local paramedic treats patients and a doctor pays a weekly visit. Those with serious conditions are referred to the hospital. Daily, the centre treats around 100 patients. Now with help from some individuals and companies who have invested in Abedin’s social entrepreneurship, a basic pharmacy is running, distributing free medicines to patients.

The health centre treats minor ailments like fever, diarrhoea and simple injuries and helps those who suffer from asthma. It also has a small maternity ward, although those with complications are immediately referred to a hospital. The staff members also talk to rural women on maternal health and child care. Villagers from neighbouring areas speak highly of Joynal Abedin’s social entrepreneurship work.

When the local media reported on his social entrepreneurship work, some individuals were inspired to make a financial donation to Abedin, which he used to build a couple of tin roof sheds and started a coaching centre for primary school students! This coaching centre caters to the children of day labourers and farmers; now more than 150 students are studying Bengali, Arabic, basic maths and English. It is very unusual in a country like Bangladesh for a rickshaw puller to invest his entire savings to start a clinic for others, but Joynal Abedon’s ambition does not stop here. He says, “My dream is to convert this clinic into a full-fledged hospital with the help of the government and other donors.”

From the story above, it is clear that nothing is impossible... When there is a will, there is a way.

In conclusion, Social Enterprise Clinic is not just a dream that is unreachable,  in fact, it is going to be a great success in the future --and most importantly, it is able to make a huge difference in the world...

9 Nov 2012 record

9 Nov 2012

What did we learn today?

Problem and solution sharing session

Identify 1.Revenue Stream

             2.Key Resources

             3.Key Activities

             4..Key Partners

             5..Cost Structure

What we did  in class?

We discuss on our bussiness plan on social enterprise clinic project, in terms of revenue stream, key resources, key activities, key partners and cost structure.



Revenue Stream
refers to the cash generated for each customer segment

Asset sale, usage fee, subcription fee, lending/rending/leasing, Licensing, brokerage fee, Advertising, souvenirs..





Key Resources(KR) Markets, Client-customer relationship, distribution channel, marketing strategy
These resources allow an enterprise to create and offer a Value Proposition, reach markets, maintain relationships with Customer Segments and earn revenues.

Key Activity(KA)

Things a company must do to make its business work. Key Activities can be categorized as follows :

-Production

-Problem Solving

-Platform

-Re-innovation of business process

-Ground activations



Key Partners

Why we need to create partnership?

Optimization and economy of risk, reduce risk and uncertainty, acquisition of particular resources and activities.

There are 4 Different types of partnership:1. strategic alliances between non-competitors

                                                                          2.Competition: strategic partnerships between competitors

                                                                          3.Joint ventures to develop new businesses

                                                                          4.Buyer-suppler relationships to assure reliable supplies.\

Cost Structures

Definition: all costs incurred to opperate a business model

there are 2 types: cost driven or value driven

Characteristics:

Fixed cost, Variable costs, economies of scale, economies of scope 

Business Plan For Social Hospital

Update from 25/10/2012 : Mr Bernard showed inspirational videos about the Cataract Blindness project in India. Based on an estimated 3.5 million cataract surgeries each year, about 320,000 people were saved from blindness annually. Overall population prevalence of cataract blindness declined by 26 percent, from 1.5 percent at baseline to 1.1 percent, during the program period.

Health Condition: The leading cause of global blindness, cataract is present in more than half of all cases. Cataract is an age-related condition in which the lens of the eye becomes clouded, blurring vision. In 1998, it was estimated that some 20 million people were blind due to cataract, and at least 100 million eyes have very poor vision as a result of cataract. In India in the early 1990s, it was estimated that more than 80 percent of blind people, or more than 10 million individuals, suffered from bilateral cataract, and another 10 million individuals had cataract in one eye.

Intervention or Program: In 1994, recognizing both the tremendous problem of adult blindness in India, and the shortcomings in the existing cataract treatment program, the Cataract Blindness Control Program was formed in seven states in India where the need was most concentrated. The program consisted of introducing a new, more effective surgical technique; shifting from a strategy of providing treatment in mass camps to one in which fixed sites were used; partnering with Aravind Eye Hospital and other NGOs for delivery of services; and improving management and training at all levels.

Cost and Cost-Effectiveness: The total cost of the project was about US$136 million, with close to 90 percent coming from the Bank and the remainder from the Government of India. In some settings, costs were as low as $10 per cataract operation, due to the efficiencies of high patient volume and the local production of high-quality artificial lenses. Overall, the cost-effectiveness of surgery in the South Asia region has been estimated at about $60 per disability-adjusted life year.

Impact: A cumulative total of 15.35 million cataract operations were performed within the seven years of the program, which was successful in improving the quality of care. Surgeries using the recommended technique increased from 3 percent before 1994 to about 42 percent (cumulative) between 1999-2002. Based on an estimated 3.5 million cataract surgeries in India in 2000, 320,000 people were saved from blindness.

Source :
http://www.cgdev.org/section/initiatives/_archive/millionssaved/studies/case_19

Our group stood up for the challenge to devise a business plan to run a social enterprise clinic which is social oriented in urban areas targeting the urban poor. Mr. Bernard promised to bring a guest who is currently running a social oriented clinic in Malaysia to inspire us. A session of which we all look forward to. He also offered a bounty of RM 800 for  each member of the winning team. Our group will gather more information about social oriented hospital worldwide through the world wide web to help us generate ideas for our plan. 

Challenge Accepted!!!