LifeSpring Hospitals a joint venture between Hindustan Latex under the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, and the Acumen Fund - a US-based non-profit global venture philanthropy fund, has launched two new maternity hospitals at Mallapur, a semi-urban community on the outskirts of Hyderabad and at Nellore, both in Andhra Pradesh. A special launch function was held to commemorate the opening, which was attended by M Ayyappan, CMD, Hindustan Latex Ltd, Thiruvananthapuram, a press release from HLL said.

The first LifeSpring Hospital was established in Moula Ali (Hyderabad) in December 2005 with the objective of reducing maternal and child mortality and morbidity, particularly amongst the lower-income segment of Indian society.

With the opening of the Hospitals at Mallapur and Nellore, the foundations are set to build a chain of similar hospitals across India to provide high quality and affordable health care services to women and children in lower and lower-middle income households, the release said.

According to sources, LifeSpring charges between 30-50 per cent of the prevailing market rates. With 80 per cent of all health care expenditure in India out-of-pocket, LifeSpring will significantly lessen the burden of rising health costs on the nation's low-income communities, helping to reduce poverty. Its service offering includes: antenatal care, post-natal care, deliveries (normal and caesarean), and family planning services. LifeSpring also provides paediatric care, including immunizations, as well as diagnostic services, a pharmacy and health care education to the communities in which they are located.

LifeSpring plans to scale in India to 140 franchised hospitals between 2010 and 2012 and aspires to serve as a model for the provision of high quality maternal and child health services to the world's poor. Over the next five years an estimated 82,000 women will be benefited from LifeSpring's services, the release added.