COIMBATORE: Due to a lack of understanding regarding the Ayushman Bharat Health Account (ABHA) registration, hundreds of people are thronging government hospitals daily, fearing they will lose out on financial assistance under the prime minister’s or chief minister’s health insurance scheme.
Besides, healthcare staff at hospitals, worried about manpower shortage, further slow down the registration process. They said that there is a growing demand to set up separate counters in hospitals exclusively for ABHA registration.
Registration for ABHA — a unique 14-digit digital health ID — a key component of the centre’s Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM) is being carried out intensively in government hospitals across Tamil Nadu. Once registered, with the patient’s consent, doctors can access their previous medical history, test results, lab reports, prescribed medicines and treatment details on a computer. For this, people are asked to provide their Aadhaar-linked mobile number with a phone for registration using OTP.
“At the Mettupalayam Government Hospital, over 200 people wait in long queues from early morning every day for ABHA registration. Since those coming for registration and those seeking treatment wait in the same place, it creates an unmanageable crowd,” said S Basha, a social activist from Mettupalayam.
While the scheme, introduced to digitise future healthcare services, has been welcomed, the lack of adequate awareness and sufficient registration facilities has led to huge crowds in government hospitals daily. Patients coming for treatment are facing severe hardship as a result.
“Due to manpower shortage to carry out the registration and the consequent delay which affects patients, healthcare staff at government hospitals have been avoiding insisting on everyone to register. Meanwhile, lack of awareness about the registration pushes many people towards GHs, and they throng the premises during outpatient hours,” said a doctor working at a GH, under condition of anonymity.
Dr V Sumathi, joint director of Medical and Rural Health Services, Coimbatore district, said, “If there is a huge crowd, healthcare staff are instructed not to compel patients to register and allow them to receive treatment. Meanwhile, our volunteers will approach patients and help them to get registered. We are arranging for posters to create awareness about the scheme and have asked every hospital to open additional counters for the ABHA registration,” she said.
