Patna: Bihar has pocketed eighth rating in this country among 31 countries participating in utilizing ‘ESInjeevani’, a digital health service platform from the Ministry of Health and the Welfare of the Union Family.
In accordance with the data distributed by the ministry, around 2,23,197 people from Bihar have so far have consultations about the free telemedicine platform.
31 Countries together contributed 70 lakh doctor-to-patient consulting since the launch of the scheme.
Of the total consultation recorded in Bihar, 2,22,482 took place through the Ayushman Bharat Health and Wellness Center (AB-HWCS) program and 715 via OPD online.
Technology-based health services currently operate in 31 states / unions in this country and are widely used for telemedic advice by non-covid patients throughout the country.
Andhra Pradesh has used facilities with a 16 lakh consultation, followed by Tamil Nadu (12.6 lakh) and Karnataka (12.1 lakh).
At the sixth anniversary of Indian digital initiatives, PM Narendra Modi praised Esanjeevani and almost interacted with the beneficiaries of women from the East Champaran in Bihar, Kanti Devi (70), which was being treated digitally by the KGMC Hospital, Lucknow.
Esanjeevani was launched at Bihar in February this year and new digital services quickly gained popularity during the second wave of covid pandemic.
Dr.
B P Jaiswal, Associate Professor of the Pediatric Department at NMCH-Patna, said it encouraged that so many people in Bihar used digital health services during the second wave of pandemic.
“Such services are proven to be useful during the crisis situation when people are not permitted out.
However, the situation improved now and health facilities functioned with their full capacity,” he said.
The Indian Medical Association (IMA) -Bihar has also launched its own telemedicine service for the state community.
Dr.
Sunil Kumar, Secretary of Ima-Bihar, said during the Covid-19 surge, they received 300-400 calls per day for medical consultations.
“Now, the number of consultations has dropped to an average of 5-7.
The digital health service platform is very important to provide medical facilities to patients during the pandemic situation,” he said.
Dr.
Kumar added that telemedicine services played a very important role in April, May and June this year, and many people were cured by following doctor’s advice.
Dr.
Rajiv Ranjan Prasad, former Ima-Bihar President, said Telemedicine is a medical support system for the type of crisis management and it cannot be a routine practice.
“The state needs to strengthen its medical infrastructure.
For the Medical Council and Academic Agency, Telemedicine is only a short cutting method and this service only provides temporary assistance to the patient,” he added.
Dr.
Arun Shah, a senior child doctor Muzaffarpur and former President of the Indian Academy of Pediatri-Bihar, said people in the state did not understand technology, especially in rural areas.
“Internet connectivity is a big problem in the state.
Second, many people don’t even realize digital health and telemedicine health services,” he said.