WhatsApp-Based Telemedicine Aids Cardiac Care in Tamil Nadu: Study

The study, recently published in the Indian Journal of Medical Research, analyzed how the program leveraged WhatsApp groups for real-time medical coordination.

A five-year study has found that Tamil Nadu’s government-run Heart Attack Management Programme, operated through WhatsApp-based telemedicine, significantly improved treatment outcomes for patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI).

Conducted between 2019 and 2023, the initiative used a hub-and-spoke model to connect 18 government medical college hospitals with 188 district and taluk-level government hospitals across the state.

The study, recently published in the Indian Journal of Medical Research, analyzed how the program leveraged WhatsApp groups for real-time medical coordination.

Cardiologists from hub hospitals provided treatment guidance to peripheral units, helping initiate early intervention, streamline patient transfers, and monitor care delivery across clusters.

71,907 STEMI Cases Treated; Improved Access to Pharmaco-Invasive Care

The analysis revealed that 71,907 patients with STEMI were treated during the five years. The number of individuals receiving pharmaco-invasive therapy rose from 7.9% to 31.7%, while those undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) increased by 68%. Meanwhile, the number of patients who did not receive guideline-directed therapy dropped by 20%.

“There was a 6.7-fold increase in the number of individuals referred from spoke to hub hospitals for catheter-based revascularisation,” the study reported. Although the overall mortality rate saw a marginal decline—from 8.7% to 8.3%—hospitals added in the second implementation phase registered a more significant improvement, with mortality reducing from 8.5% to 5.8%.

Dr. G. Justin Paul, Professor of Cardiology at Madras Medical College and the program’s nodal officer, said, “In developed nations, STEMI care is built around primary PCI within 90-120 minutes. However, this setup is difficult to replicate in developing countries due to infrastructure and workforce limitations.”

WhatsApp Groups Enable Faster Communication and Coordination

Eighteen dedicated WhatsApp groups—one for each cluster—were used to manage suspected heart attack cases. These allowed swift coordination between specialists in hub hospitals and teams at spoke hospitals. The model enabled even resource-limited facilities to initiate timely fibrinolysis and connect patients to PCI-capable centers when needed.

Dr. Paul emphasized, “The current study highlights that any timely treatment to restore blood flow is lifesaving, even if limited to fibrinolysis. Any form of revascularisation is definitely better than no revascularisation at all. Healthcare systems in developing nations must focus on early heart attack management and begin with fibrinolysis as a foundation.”

The phased rollout, with 12 clusters formed between 2017 and 2018 and six more between 2019 and 2020, was based on transport logistics and proximity. This systematic clustering, supported by telemedicine guidance, improved access to timely cardiac care in rural and semi-urban regions.

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