Centre’s telemedicine service clocks 700k consultations: Data

eSanjeevaniOPD , which enables access to OPD services within the confines of a patient’s home, was launched on April 13 during the first phase of the nationwide lockdown restrictions, when non-Covid-19 services were majorly affected.

eSanjeevani, the national telemedicine service set up by the Union ministry of health and family welfare, has recorded over 700,000 consultations, according to the government data.

Civil defence members and counsellors work at the Covid-19 district surveillance and telemedicine hub at a school in New Delhi on August 2, 2020.(Bloomberg)

The last 100,000 consultations have been recorded in the past 11 days.

This novel digital mechanism to deliver out patient department (OPD) services virtually has been rapidly gaining popularity since 68-day nationwide lockdown restrictions were enforced on March 25 in a bid to contain the spread of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) outbreak.

eSanjeevaniOPD , which enables access to OPD services within the confines of a patient’s home, was launched on April 13 during the first phase of the nationwide lockdown restrictions, when non-Covid-19 services were majorly affected.

eSanjeevaniOPD is shaping up into the largest OPD services in the country and is logging over 10,000 consultations a day.

“Telemedicine is beneficial for patients. It is also favourable for doctors because it limits the contact with patients who are present virtually. eSanjeevani has removed the requirement of doctors to be at a specific location to provide services. It enables states, especially those with large geographical areas, manage their human resources better,” said the ministry in a statement.

“Patients, who are seeking medical consultations, are placed in a virtual queue. Doctors are also available virtually. Each online OPD consultation generates an ePrescription which can be used to buy medicines or go for diagnostic investigations. Kerala and Tamil Nadu (TN) have already issued orders to ensure that ePrescriptions are honored,” the statement added.

eSanjeevani and eSanjeevaniOPD platforms have become popular in Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Kerala, Himachal Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Uttarakhand, Karnataka and Maharashtra.