International Health Dialogue (IHD) 2026 opened today in
Hyderabad, bringing together clinicians, patient safety leaders, accreditation experts, and
health system policymakers from India and abroad. With the theme Global Voices. One Vision.

Day 1 centred patient safety where it truly belongs, as a leadership and governance priority,
shaped by equity and enabled by responsible digital transformation. The discussions reflected a
clear direction across geographies: India’s lived experience of delivering care at scale, while
steadily strengthening standards and accountability, is increasingly informing how the world
thinks about patient safety and trust.

Opening the conference, Dr. Sangita Reddy, Joint Managing Director, Apollo Hospitals Group,
recalled the founding purpose of IHD as a platform built for sharing learning that should not
remain confined to individual systems. “So much innovation is happening within our hospitals,
within our systems. We are learning every day. But why is this knowledge staying within our
own ecosystem? Why are we not sharing it more openly?” she said, adding that the intent has
always been to “take what we have learned and make it useful for others.” Reflecting the
expanding global relevance of the platform, she noted that IHD 2026 received over 5,000
registrations, 300+ paper submissions, and 120+ award entries from 75+ institutions worldwide.

Setting the tone for outcomes that work in real life, Dr Jayesh Ranjan, Special Chief Secretary
for the Industries & Commerce (I&C) and Information Technology (IT) Departments,
Government of Telangana, highlighted why equity must sit at the centre of patient safety
design. “When we talk about sharing learning and improving systems, we have to start with the
truth that patients are not homogeneous. Different patients live in different worlds, and safety
means different things in each,” he said. “An equity lens forces a design lens. If we want patient
safety to hold up in the real world, we must design for those who are most vulnerable, and we
must plan for continuity, access, and how people actually behave,” he added. On digital
inclusion, he observed, “The digital divide is not only infrastructure. Often, the mindset divide is
bigger.”

Across the day, speakers converged on one practical point: patient safety outcomes increasingly
depend on how well the ecosystem works as a coordinated whole, across regulators,
accreditors, providers, and technology partners. In the opening plenary, Dr. Madhu Sasidhar,
President and Chief Executive Officer, Hospitals Division, Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Limited,
emphasised shared ownership and organisational accountability. “Patient safety cannot be
solved by one stakeholder alone. It requires regulators, governments, accreditors, providers, and
technology firms to work as one. Patient safety is not a departmental responsibility. It is in fact
an organisational leadership responsibility.”

A strong thread through multiple sessions was the need to move from reactive care to earlier,
more preventive intervention. Speaking to the pressure health systems face globally, Dr Sangita
Reddy noted, “Healthcare demand is rising. We cannot solve exponential problems with linear
solutions.” The discussions linked this to sharper prevention strategies, clearer outcome
measurement, and digital tools that are deployed with discipline and accountability.

From a global quality and safety lens, Dr. Carsten Engel, CEO, International Society for Quality in
Health Care (ISQua), reflected on the gap between sustained attention and on-ground
improvement. “Patient safety has been on the agenda for decades, but we still have to say we
are not there yet,” he said. He cautioned against adding activity without impact, noting, “We
risk creating safety clutter, procedures and activities done in the name of safety that do not
improve safety.” He urged leaders to adopt a systems view of behaviour and context: “Don’t
ask why people didn’t do what they should have done. Ask why it made sense for them to do
what they did.”

On standards and execution, Dr. Atul Mohan Kochhar, CEO, National Accreditation Board for
Hospitals & Healthcare Providers (NABH), underlined urgency with an implementation-first
approach. “Patient safety is not only a technical issue. It is a moral, social, and economic
imperative. Policies alone do not improve safety. Implementation efficiency does,” he said.

Reinforcing ambition in measurable terms, he added, “We must be ambitious when it comes to
patient safety. Zero harm is the only number that can be accepted for patient safety risk.”
Building on this emphasis on implementation, accountability, and measurable safety outcomes,
Apollo Hospitals also signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Roche Diagnostics India as
part of Day 1 proceedings to explore the integration of advanced artificial intelligence into
clinical decision-making. The collaboration will focus on translating AI-enabled insights into
practical, clinician-friendly support across care pathways, strengthening consistency in clinical
judgement, earlier risk identification, and safer, more standardised care delivery at scale.

Apollo’s emphasis on culture-led transformation was articulated by Dr. Rohini Sridhar, Chief of
Medical Services, Apollo Hospitals, who stressed that systems improve only when clinical teams
move together with the organisation. “Unless clinicians walk with you, zero harm cannot be
achieved. If one unit experiences harm, every unit must learn immediately. Technology
accelerates learning, but culture determines action.”

Later in the day, IHD 2026 hosted a dedicated spotlight session for the newly launched digital
health startup community, with a curated set of startups pitching to investors. The session
focused on solutions grounded in real clinical and operational gaps, including safer workflows,
decision support, early risk identification, improved documentation, and scalable patient
engagement. The segment reinforced IHD’s emphasis on translating innovation into validated,
implementable tools that strengthen safety, outcomes, and trust.

IHD 2026 continues on January 31 in Hyderabad with further sessions and showcases focused
on patient safety, digital transformation, healthcare operations, and clinical learning.