Nearly 13,000 remote area patients have been attended so far in the far-flung regions of Udhampur-Kathua-Doda Lok Sabha constituency by “Doctor on Wheels”, the first-of-its-kind, state-of-the-art, Artificial Intelligence (AI) driven  free Mobile Telemedicine Clinic.

This was stated in New Delhi today in a media interview by Union Minister  Dr Jitendra Singh who said that  this novel experiment makes use of the latest technology tools whereby the patient attended by the Mobile Telemedicine Clinic is screened, thoroughly investigated and then the consultation is obtained from the concerned super-specialist doctor in one of the leading hospitals in metros like Hyderabad and Bengaluru with whom an arrangement has been tied up for the purpose. This entire exercise of patient examination and providing a prescription is accomplished in around 45 minutes which may otherwise take several days if the patient has to physically go to the hospital, he said.

The majority of beneficiaries of the ‘Doctor on Wheels’ initiative are women, said Dr Jitendra Singh, stating that out of a total of 11,431 beneficiaries in Doda, Hiranagar and Kathua -Billawar areas, 6,643 were women.

Same trend is visible currently in the fourth phase in remote Dudu Basantgarh in the upper reaches of Ramnagar block of district Udhampur where as many as 835 women have availed consultation out of a total of 1,452 beneficiaries in 56 villages under 22 Panchayats where  the Clinic van has camped so far, he said.

Dr Jitendra Singh further explained that while the entire process of patient’s examination and consultation calls for a very heavy  cost, in this case it is being done free of cost to the patients in his constituency through the funds raised from voluntary sources.

The state-of-the-art, Artificial Intelligence (AI) supported "Aarogya-Doctor on Wheels"  is possibly the first of its kind Telemedicine Mobile Clinic, said Dr Jitendra Singh.

Its huge success will inspire other similar initiatives elsewhere across the country as well, he said.

"Aarogya-Doctor on Wheels" functions on the latest methodology wherein a patient can narrate his illness or complaint in his native language and the AI Doctor understands the language and responds to the patient in the same language, said Dr Jitendra Singh.

Dr Jitendra Singh said, this free telemedicine facility overcomes the problems of ‘Accessibility, Availability and Affordability'. He said, the obstacles like quality of services, specialised doctor, distance of travelling and cost of consultation/treatment are targeted and solved efficiently through this facility. Ordinarily, a metro hospital will cost a patient very heavily  and may take two to three weeks’ time. This type of free telemedicine mobile camp solves all the problems especially for those having weak socio-economic background, he said.

For the convenience of patients, the prescribed medicines are also being provided free of cost and in addition, medicine kits containing commonly used drugs are being distributed across the constituency free of cost to all the families in general, Dr Jitendra Singh informed.

The mobile telemedicine clinic "Aarogya-Doctor on Wheels" is an initiative to tie up with various doctors of leading super speciality hospitals of the country providing quality healthcare to the remotest and inaccessible areas, he said. 

This latest super speciality mobile hospital, inspired by the Prime Minister's Digital Health Mission and Ayushman Bharat, is providing doorstep consultation with doctors and has helped bridge the Urban and Rural divide in preventive healthcare, he added. 

Dr Jitendra Singh informed that the mobile Aarogya clinic is presently being conducted in Dudu Basantgarh in the upper reaches of Ramnagar block of Udhampur under the 4th phase from 17th January 2024. 

Dr Jitendra Singh, who represents the Udhampur parliamentary constituency that also covers Kathua and Doda districts, said, the first phase of this facility covered more than 60 villages in the far-flung Gandoh area of district Doda where it spent three months. The second phase was conducted along the Zero Line villages of the International Border, and the third phase was held in the upper reaches of Bilawar, where such healthcare facilities are either not available or inadequately available, he said.

The Union Minister said the mobile telemedicine service, the first healthcare service that is delivered via digital mode, is being provided in J&K purely from non-government sources by two Startup groups belonging to North India and South India. 

The mantra of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, - ‘Seva, Samparan and Start-up’ is being followed in these free telemedicine mobile services with extraordinary medical facilities for people with low socio-economic background as this government is dedicated to the poor, said Dr. Jitendra Singh.

Dr Jitendra Singh appealed to the local people to avail the facility, saying that through this latest super speciality hospital, doctors are coming right to their doorsteps. The ‘Doctor on Wheels’ ambulance is equipped with the latest technology and system to connect patients with senior doctors from across the country, he said. 

Emphasising that India today is technologically at par with the most developed countries, Dr Jitendra Singh, who is himself a renowned Diabetologist, asserted that these services are of the same standards as the ones provided anywhere in the world. He also claimed that advanced robotic surgeries will be done in the future using telemedicine services. 

The Minister said that Prime Minister Modi has made a firm resolve to provide healthcare facilities to the remotest parts of the country, harnessing the latest technological developments. The present initiative is also inspired by that, he said.

India, under PM Modi, surprised the world by administering 220 crore Covid vaccine doses through Cowin, a fully digital platform, he said.

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SNC/PK/PM