K’taka govt launches “Apthamitra” helpline and App to fight COVID-19

PTI, Apr 22, 2020, 4:55 PM IST

Bengaluru: Aimed at empowering people in its fight against coronavirus, the Karnataka government on Wednesday launched “Apthamitra” helpline with an exclusive toll free number and a mobile app, aimed at providing required medical advice and guidance for those in need.

The help line and app was launched by Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa in the presence of senior Ministers and officials of the department.

“If anyone has symptoms of coronavirus, they can call the helpline from their home, get medical advice or assistance and get their doubts cleared.

Based on the symptoms, an expert team of doctors will advice on what to do next,” he said.

According to the department, the ‘Apthamitra’ helpline will work from 8 AM to 8 PM, with helpline Centers at six locations in Bengaluru (four centers), Mysore and Mangalore (Bantwal) with total of 300 seat capacity are being set up.

It’s a two tier system where the first tier is manned by AYUSH or nursing or pharma final year volunteer students.

The second tier is manned by MBBS or Integrated Medicine or AYUSH volunteer doctors connecting from their respective locations for risk assessment, counselling, telemedicine and referral for testing and treatment, it added.

The helpline “14410” will cover residents in all parts of the state.

While the ‘Apthamitra’ App is for those with smart phone to seek advice for telemedicine from doctors directly.

The purpose of this initiative is to reach out to people, especially those staying in Corona hotspot areas, identify those having Influenza Like Illness (ILI), Severe Acute Respiratory Infection (SERI), coronavirus like symptoms or having high risk of getting infected, the state health department said.

It also intends to identify people with low risk, but having some symptoms similar to those of coronavirus and provide them telemedicine support with OTC medicines, and counsel them for self-quarantine.

It also aims to follow-up all low risk cases till they get fully cured, along with assessing those having medium to high risk of coronavirus and get them to fever clinics or COVID-19 screening centers for testing and treatment, the department said in a release.

The intention of the platform is to analyse incidence of IlI, inform decisions for graded relaxation of the lockdown to resume economic activities in areas with low prevalence of the symptoms while stepping up containment measures in hotspots, clusters and disease break-out areas, it said.

This entire Solution is owned by Health and Family Welfare Department and State Disaster Management Authority.

The system works under the aegis of NASSCOM, Bengaluru.

The Digital Mobile app and the back end CRM system have been developed by Infosys BPM (the subsidiary of Infosys Ltd), the release said.

Further Infosys BPM and Hinduja Global Solutions have worked together to design, build and execute the Multi-Channel customer contact Solution with the Contact Center Infra being provided by Infosys, HGS, Concentrix, MPhasis and HCL as partners in the fight against coronavirus,it added.