Utilization of Digital Health Tools for Comprehensive Primary Healthcare: A Situational Analysis of Uttar Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh, India
Author : Dr. Preeti Kumar
Abstract :A key pillar of Ayushman Bharat is to roll out Comprehensive Primary Health Care (CPHC) by establishing Health and Wellness Centers (HWCs) in the country. In Feb 2018, Government of India announced creation of 150,000 HWCs by transforming existing sub-centers (SCs) and primary health care centers (PHCs) by the year 2022 to provide an essential package of 12 services*1. The principle behind providing these essential package of services is to bring “time to care” to not more than 30 minutes (NHSRC 2018) 1. The use of digital tools in health services have an enormous potential for improving quality and delivery of primary healthcare. Available literature suggests, use of mhealth for improved knowledge and skills related to maternal and child health for Accredited Social Health Activists’ (ASHAs) in tribal areas of Gujarat (Shah et al.,2018)2 and under the National Health Mission (NHM (Chib et al. 2012)3 ; telemedicine for healthcare delivery in underserved rural areas (Mathur et al., 2017)4 ; and smartphone usage for improved coordination, confidence and performance levels among the front-line workers and impact on beneficiary health behavior in Saharsa, Bihar (Borkum et.al., 2015)5. mHealth interventions have also enhanced uptake of iron and folic acid supplementation and self-reporting of pregnancy and delivery related complications in Uttar Pradesh (Prinja et al. 2017)6. In July, 2018, NITI Aayog proposed a visionary digital framework, “National Health Stack” aiming to create digital health records for citizens of India by the year 2022 (NITI Aayog 2018b)7. In line with this, an Information Technology (IT) System interoperable at the national and state level is also envisioned at the HWCs (NHSRC 2018)1.
Keywords :Ayushman Bharat, Health and Wellness Centers, primary healthcare, digital tools, mHealth.
Conference Name :International Conference on Public Health, Health Management and Policy (ICPHHMP-24)
Conference Place Melbourne, Australia
Conference Date 20th Dec 2024
