Patients in remote areas will soon have access to specialists in cities following revival of telemedicine facility by Department of Health and Family Welfare in three months.
With the help of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), six hospitals have been identified across the City to provide health services to district hospitals.
Speaking on the sidelines of the national conference on Bringing Evidence into Public Health Policy held here on Friday, Madan Gopal, Principal Secretary, Department of Health and Family Welfare, said, “We have identified St Johns Hospital, NIMHANS, Kidwai Memorial Institute of Oncology, Narayana Hrudalaya, Sri Jayadeva Institute of Cardiology and Samarthan Centre for Development Support.
” He added that consultation will be provided from these hospitals to District Hospitals with one speciality per week of the day.
“If we have nephrology consultation on one day, there will be cardiology on the next so that all specialties are covered,” said Gopal.
The project will also have tele-radiology service available in this phase, he said.
Telemedicine enables medical services to patients over long distance via telecommunication network remotely.
In the first phase of the telemedicine project, ISRO had got the facility operational in 12 districts and later during the second phase in 2008, it was operational in as many as 14 districts across the State.
In this series, the Department also plans to set up a new help-line ‘Health-line’ in addition to the existing 104 help-line.
“It will have a package of services like a medical directory and diagnostic services,” he said.
Along with these, the helpline will provide specialised medical advice on geriatrics, mental health and has a grievance redressal option, said Gopal.
Health-line will be launched in the next three months, he added.
