Meet Hari Sankar, Research Fellow at George Institute India
Hari Sankar is a Research Fellow at the George Institute, working in Health Systems and Equity unit, in a project named "Assessing Equity of Universal Health Coverage in India: From Data to Decision-Making Using Mixed Methods".
Q. Tell us a bit about your professional background?
I have a bachelors degree in Ayurveda, Medicine, and Surgery from Amritha University and masters in public health from SRM university. I started my career in health insurance claim fraud investigation in MD India (with a Third Party Adminstrator, TPA). I worked with State Health Systems Resource Centre Kerala as a Research Officer and briefly with the World Health Organisation’s National Public Health Surveillance Programme as a Surveillance Medical Officer. In the last seven years of work, I have acquired experience in health systems research, primary care and vaccine-preventable disease surveillance.
Q. What is your role in TGI?
I work in Health Systems and Equity division of TGI as a Research Fellow in a project titled Assessing Equity of Universal Health Coverage in India: From Data to Decision-Making Using Mixed Methods.
Q. What inspires you in the work you do and why?
I had the opportunity to be part of various public health initiatives implemented by government health agencies and NGOs. The positive effect of these programs in the lives of people is something I have watched closely and that is a powerful motivator to continue to work in this sector. It also instils a responsibility to ensure that the implementation favours every single beneficiary and no-one is left out. Looking at the health system through an equity lens and recommending course corrections is the primary objective of our current work.
Q. Has your day-to-day life changed since the corona virus crisis began? And how?
Yes, the lockdown has cut off all kinds of social interactions and reduced the day-to-day life to indoors only. The daily news about the disease spread has added a lot of anxiety and tension, and keeping ourselves engaged seem to be the only way to stay calm.
Q. What does a normal day look like at work for you now? Has your work life changed at all due to the corona virus?
I work in a field office in Kerala and a normal working day starts with communicating online over mail with programme head and team based in Delhi office. The rest of the day is spent keeping up with the deliverables. This requires preparing reports about ongoing activities of the project, interaction with our project stakeholders in the Kerala Department of Health and field visits for data collection.
Q. Has the crisis affected any of your work projects/programs? If so, how have you adapted to the situation?
Yes, it has delayed data collection and dissemination exercises planned for this period. The option of work from home helps to keep up with most of the routine work. We have adjusted the deliverables to focus more academic outputs till the end of the lockdown period.
Q. What kind of support do you need from TGI during this period?
The frequent online interactions with colleagues help a lot in these times; ensuring that it continues would be great.
Q. Any advice for your colleagues during these challenging times?
COVID-19 pandemic has impacted life on a global scale and this is time for solidarity and resilience. Ensuring that we stay free of undue stress which is a by-product of the restriction and helping our families and colleagues in overcoming this crisis would be my advice in these challenging times.