Scaling Compassion, Blurring Boundaries: Partners and Cooperation in Aravind Eye Care System

Abstract

Healthcare for the poor in India has traditionally been a domain of public services. New business models based on cross-boundary cooperation between stakeholders are unique in their attempts to be inclusive, affordable, and viable. This chapter studies the process of cross-boundary cooperation by analyzing partnerships in Aravind Eye Care System (Aravind), a renowned eye care service delivery in southern India, known for its low cost, high quality, and high volume. Through the use of ethnographic narratives, one sees the process of partner selection, achievement of network goals, and cooperative learning—as well as the way these factors influence inclusivity and affordability in eye care. The chapter attempts to understand how values like empathy and compassion, integral to healthcare services, get transmitted outside the boundaries of the participating organizations and become embedded in the extended network. The chapter is divided into two sections. The first shows how Aravind has attempted to scale up compassion by partnering with local organizations in Tamil Nadu, the state where it primarily operates. The second part examines the process of blurring organizational boundaries where Aravind extends its services to other hospitals in India and elsewhere. Atypically, Aravind gives away its knowledge to these hospitals.