The ‘golden opportunity’ of winning an award

Whom would you choose between these two options:

  • A doctor/clinic that’s decorated with awards and trophies for their “presumably” exemplary work or

  • A doctor who simply does good work

There can be a third option as well wherein a clinic/doctor actually does exemplary work and is awarded for it multiple times. Though, in fact, such a category doesn’t exist in principle because someone actually doing good work would and should not be doing it for that ‘ self-nominated’ recognition. Why do we say so? Because all such awards are “Self Nominated” or simply “Bought”.

Don’t get us wrong, we love the fact that someone’s contribution to society in the field of healthcare is acknowledged. Awards honour the passion and hard work of a doctor or an organisation providing inspiration to those who would follow suit. But more importantly, did you know that these so-called ‘awards of excellence’ become the perfect ‘business’ schemes?

So how do we prove it? Well, here goes our story:

“You’ve been doing some commendable work! Why haven’t you won any awards?”

That’s a question we’ve been asked time and again for the last 10 years. Some clinics receive

awards year on year, while others struggle to catch up.

We always knew about the dubious nature of such awards and ceremonies and never got involved with them till the time it was stated by a fellow colleague that ‘only those who don’t get awarded for their work are the ones claiming such allegations’.

We also wondered if patients really ever cared for such awards and were influenced by them to choose a doctor or was it only a business strategy developed by a few to prove superiority or massage one’s ego.

So last year we decided to do something about it and, after 10 long years, we can finally say we’ve made it! Last year alone, we were honoured with three prestigious awards:

– Best Dental Clinic in Pune, 2018

– Highly Commended Dental Clinic in India, 2018

Dr Priyank Mathur – Best Implantologist in Pune, 2018

Since we’re now on the global healthcare map, it looks like as good a time as any to put our thoughts on this subject out there.

In the name of putting your brand ‘on the map’, event organisers or healthcare consultancies get in touch with you. Luring you with the promise of ‘international credibility’ and brand visibility, you’re asked to nominate yourself in multiple categories. Each nomination requires a healthy sum to be paid.

For example, a typical award ceremony has numerous categories and organisers request for anything between 3,000 per nomination to 2 lakhs for a lumpsum package. Depending on the size or popularity of the event, some categories may have as many as 50-70 nominations. It’s a jackpot, isn’t it? The organisers collect crores from the nominations itself.

What’s more – if you haven’t won the award you applied for, there are always sub-categories created to give you your money’s worth. Ironically, while nominations and awardees are mainly from India, that doesn’t stop them from calling it international or global recognition. So congratulations! You now have an award with a global recognition!

In fact, when it comes to ranking certain hospitals or clinics in the top health and lifestyle surveys for top newspapers – nationally or regionally – you’re often asked to buy advertisement space in a publication. The more expensive space you buy, the higher will be your ranking.

In the last decade, we have always made patient experience top priority without worrying about filling our shelves with these so-called awards. We strive to deliver nothing less than excellence and will continue to do so with or without the awards. Our work speaks for itself and we request patients to judge us based on this very work!

Disclaimer: The thoughts written in the blog are purely the opinion of the author and do not intend to malign any individual or organisation which is why we’ve not added any names. As recipients and participants of these award ceremonies, we believe we’re in a position to best judge the entire process and thereby know its credibility. While this is a general opinion, not all award ceremonies may be purely monetary transactions, some are genuine in the screening process with a business element added eventually (one of the three we received). We encourage all readers and patients alike not to get carried away by the long list of glamorous awards a clinic has won and focus more on the doctor’s work and experience instead.