Motherhood Hospital to Provide Virtual Neonatal Intensive Care System Across India

In order to provide virtual life-saving neonatal care to newborns admitted to nursing homes and hospitals in semi-urban and rural areas that do not have proper Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICUs), Motherhood Hospitals, which owns and operates 21 hospitals in ten cities, has implemented an innovative remote patient monitoring technology and system.

Critically ill newborns in remote areas can receive round-the-clock access to Motherhood's Neonatology Care Team's expertise with cutting-edge remote monitoring technology.

High-risk newborns admitted to distant NICUs are treated with the most recent remote monitoring technology and a specialized digital solution through NICU Live. Motherhood Hospitals have established a Central Care Centre (Hub) in the first phase of this one-of-a-kind initiative. This hub is connected to five remote NICUs in Anantapur, Hindupur, Madanapalle, Patna, and Hisar. The hub-and-spoke model emphasizes continuous medical support and full-time patient management. Through NICU Live, 300 high-risk newborns were treated in four months.

'œWe have established 300 NICU beds across our network which graduate more than 800 newborns each month. NICU Live is strengthening our mission of providing NICU care to the most distant parts of the country. With several newborns in rural and semi-urban areas needing immediate NICU care, this program aims to bridge the gap and make NICU accessible to all. The technology is brilliant'”what we've managed to do with it is a landmark moment in our journey to provide outstanding clinical care to newborns.' - Vijayarathna Venkatraman, CEO, Motherhood Hospitals

Using high-resolution PTZ cameras that provide a live video feed, a digital platform that ensures that all crucial information is shared digitally, and a constant communication link between the teams, the Central Care team (hub) provides remote NICU (spoke) centres with 24/7 monitoring and treatment support, significantly improving these newborns' medical outcomes. Additionally, the spoke centre care team receives regular training and upskilling in NICU treatment methods from the experienced team of neonatologists and NICU nurses.

Asia Healthcare Holdings' executive chairman, Vishal Bali added that Motherhood's NICU Live remote neonatal care is based on India's 3.5 million kilometers of optical fiber cable network, allowing data, images, and voice to seamlessly travel between the Care hub and the remote spoke in order to aid in the preservation of precious newborns' lives. NICU Live virtual neonatology care network has the potential to expand to 1,000 beds nationwide over the next five years and prove a testament to the National Digital Health Mission.