Central Govt to Integrate Telemedicine Services Under Unified Health Interface

This initiative is part of the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM) and aims to provide patients with more options and ease of acces

The Central government has announced plans to enhance its telemedicine services by integrating the e-sanjeevani telemedicine platform with the Unified Health Interface (UHI). 

This initiative is part of the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM) and aims to provide patients with more options and ease of access.

According to a letter from the National Health Authority, the agency overseeing the Ayushman Bharat scheme, the integration will promote greater interoperability in health services. 

Patients will have the capability to discover, book, conduct, and pay for healthcare services through any application of their choice.

"The proposed e-sanjeevani-uhi integration will enable citizens to discover doctors for tele-consultations and schedule appointments instantly through any Uhi-enabled End User Application (EUA). The integration with UHI will increase and demo-cratise access to e-san-jeevani's valuable service to a broader set of citizens," the letter said.

Key Highlights

Key highlights of the integration include:

Appointment Booking: Patients can identify and schedule consultations with telemedicine doctors.

Cost-Free Consultations: Patients will not incur charges for consultations.

Digital Prescription Management: There will be no need for physical prescriptions, as all health records can be stored digitally on a single platform.

Reduced Need for Physical Visits: The platform aims to decrease the necessity for visits to hospital outpatient departments (OPDs).

As of January 31, the e-sanjeevani platform has enabled the creation of 3.4 million Ayushman Bharat Health Account (ABHA) IDs and linked 4.5 million records across various states and Union territories.

The e-sanjeevani platform comprises two modules. e-sanjeevani OPD facilitates remote doctor-to-patient consultations and e-sanjeevani AB-HWC connects health and wellness centers with specialist doctors, enhancing healthcare accessibility, especially in remote regions.

By December 31, 2024, a total of 318.6 million tele-consultations had been conducted using the platform.

Looking ahead, patients will soon be able to access these services via any UHI-enabled mobile application, significantly expanding the reach and impact of e-sanjeevani's telemedicine capabilities.

Stay tuned for more such updates on Digital Health News.