'Everyone would be provided Health ID, registry of all doctors will be maintained'

Bengaluru: Everyone would be provided with a Health ID, under Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission, also a comprehensive registry of all the doctors, starting from the superspecialists to the general doctors, would be collected, Karnataka Health Minister K Sudhakar said on Monday.

He pitched for a positive partnership with private hospitals as part of the mission to devise an appropriate health system by ensuring private hospitals share the information on patients.

The Minister was speaking at a conclave on ‘Ayushman Bharat Digit Mission’ organised by NASSCOM here.

‘Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission’ is a very important programme that aims to provide the best health care to even the last person in the global context, and it will bridge the gaps in the health sector and make way to create a sustainable health ecosystem, Sudhakar said.

Stating that the State is collating information on all the health services available, including the human resources, the Minister said, ”With this initiative, we will be able to provide quality healthcare to everyone. To supplement the efforts in this direction, the ambulance services in the State will be completely overhauled in a month.” Over a telecall, he said the ambulance drivers would be provided with information as to which hospitals the patients need to be taken. With this, he said timely treatment would be provided to the patients without delays.

Sudhakar mentioned that the face of the health sector has changed in the post-COVID era, and using the tool of e-MANAS, counselling services had been provided to more than 25 lakh people in the State, since the first wave of COVID-19. Using programmes such as Tele-ICU and Tele-Medicine services, equitable and quality treatment was made available to all the regions in the State, he said.

Noting that private health facilities play a prominent role in providing health services, the Minister said more than 50 per cent of the people in the country are dependent on private establishments for their healthcare needs. Private hospitals collect all the information from the patients, however, they are not sharing this information with the government, he said that this mindset has to change. If private hospitals share the information on patients available with them, an appropriate health system can be devised. In this regard, the Minister said it was necessary to enter into a positive partnership with the private hospitals as part of the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission.