ICT Innovations in Health Care and Development
RDI has implemented various ICT based healthcare and development initiatives and served rural mountainous communities over the years. Realizing tough terrain, uncertain whether situation and other regional inequalities of mountainous region of Uttarakhand, ICT based development application has been derived and implemented to address the region- specific community needs and to provide healthcare services.
Information Communication Technology (ICT) has brought opportunities to strengthen healthcare system and development initiatives. The absorption of new knowledge and acceptance to use ICT in health care and development is increasing remarkably across the sectors. Therefore social capacity, knowledge and acceptance to utilize ICT in development programs and initiatives have been strengthened and operationalized. In the wake of rapid change in the every walk of life and society and demand to have access to basic Information Communication technology, such as mobile phones and personal computers, the use of ICT in health care and development is getting relevant.
Major Services Enabled :
- Telemedicine
- Tele-education
- Land & Water Resources Advisories
- Interactive Farmers’ Advisory Services/Tele agriculture
- E-governance services
- Client Based Information System and Counselling
- Audio-video development
Satellite based services were facilitated for addressing health, education, weather, agriculture, natural resources and livelihood needs of the rural communities. The rural population of 50000 was served by using satellite based tele services.
Major ICT Initiatives
- Satellite based services (2006-2009)
- Family Planning: Client Based Information System and Counselling (2008-2012)
- IT based Healthcare and counselling Services (2013)
- Comprehensive Package of ICT on MCH (2016 onwards)
- Media for Innovation and Change (2008 onwards)
ICT was used comprehensively in delivering Family planning services. The capacity of grass root workers was built on SMS based information system on mobile and enabled real time data reporting. By capturing the eligible couple data, front line workers was able to understand the health needs better and serve their clients efficiently. Mobile Based Audio Talk Show was developed on themes like Mala-D, Copper T, Condom and use of sanitary pads and distributed widely and used in community meetings to deliver appropriate, adequate and uniform information across for qualitative family planning services.
A comprehensive mobile phone based package has also been developed which includes mother and child health, adolescent health and other information regarding the primary health care. The package focuses on providing counselling support for health workers so that they can screen High Risk Pregnancies in the early stage and link them with health facilities as per their needs.
The system also provides service alerts to all registered women as per their status. The service alerts are also linked with service providers so that they can manage services demand as per actual basis. During the application development process, Village Health Index Registers were updated at individual, family, household and community level for understanding the actual number of target population. This also helped link all target groups directly with public health system for managing appropriate real time information at all levels.
Key highlights of the App:
- Individual, household and community mapping
- Health service mapping
- Modification and correction VHIR
- Uploaded VHIR information
- Digitalization of regular information and report
- Counselling support
- Screening guideline
- Availability of real time information
Health advocacy, promotion of health messages and community mobilization for health issues of women, children and adolescents have been addressed by Media Wing of RDI in an innovative manner. This has been operationalized as audio-visual technical resource support; fully equipped documentary making unit continuously develops thematic documentaries, short video clips and radio programmes and promoting IEC on health, water & sanitation, education in mountainous development perspective. It has been reaching the unreached at different corners of Uttarakhand, especially in the tough remote hilly part of State and helping out spread the key messages to different stakeholders.