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International Health Dialogue (IHD) 2026 presented by the Apollo Group on January 30 and 31 2026 at Hyderabad focused on strengthening standards and accountability. It highlighted on how the world viewed patient safety and trust.
The event theme ‘Global Voices One Vision’ brought together clinicians, patient safety leaders, accreditation experts, and health system policymakers from India and abroad. The discussions reflected a clear direction across geographies
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.
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.
In the opening plenary, Dr Madhu Sasidhar, president and chief executive officer, Hospitals Division, Apollo Hospitals Enterprise, emphasised shared ownership and organisational accountability.
From a global quality and safety lens, Dr. Carsten Engel, CEO, International Society for Quality in Health Care (ISQua) said, “Patient safety has been on the agenda for decades, but we still have to say we are not there yet,” he said.
Dr. Atul Mohan Kochhar, CEO, National Accreditation Board for Hospitals & Healthcare Providers (NABH), underlined urgency with an implementation-first approach.
Building on this emphasis on implementation, accountability, and measurable safety outcomes, Apollo Hospitals also signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Roche Diagnostics India 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.
Dr Rohini Sridhar, chief of medical services, Apollo Hospitals, said. “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.”
Besides, IHD 2026 hosted a dedicated spotlight session for the newly launched digital health start-up community, with a curated set of start-ups pitching to investors. It focused on solutions grounded in real clinical and operational gaps, including safer workflows, decision support, early risk identification, improved documentation, and scalable patient engagement.
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