Telemedicine service at Gangasagar to be on after huge response during Mela

KOLKATA: As a part of an integrated health management system which will ease the health care delivery mechanism in rural hospitals, a telemedicine centre was set up at Ganga Sagar Hospital before the Gangasagar Mela began.

The district administration has seen an unprecedented response as 30-35 patients have been treated through telemedicine facilities from the hospital itself.

The telemedicine centre that was opened at the hospital before the Mela will continue to treat patients. Earlier the patients who required specialised care were transferred to Diamond Harbour Medical College and other hospitals in the district. But now a sizable per cent of these patients will be treated by specialised doctors from the city through telemedicine services.

Health department has already installed telemedicine facilities in around 5,235 health and wellness centres under the National Health Mission for the initial management of patients in far-off districts.

The department is in the process of setting up more telemedicine units so that patients can be treated, reducing the number of admission to the district hospitals.

A senior health official said that over 15,000 health and wellness centres are coming up across the state where telemedicine services will be made available in a phased manner so that the initial management of various patients can be done through this platform without having to shift the patients to the city hospitals.

After coming to power the Mamata Banerjee government laid stress on an integrated health management system to streamline health care delivery mechanisms in the government-run health centres in remote districts.

Tele-medicine facilities are coming up in a big way in the health wellness centres which will do the initial management of patients, said an official.

Doctors have often suggested to us that if the initial management can be done through telemedicine many stroke patients and others do not require admission in the city hospitals, the health official added. Incidentally, the health department has already sanctioned funds worth Rs 82,72,000 which

will be diverted to 22 districts for setting up Ayush telemedicine services.