UP: Over 4,600 PHCs will soon have tele-consultancy facility, says CM Adityanath

PTI, Dec 11, 2022, 6:42 PM IST

Emphasising the importance of advanced healthcare services in Uttar Pradesh, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Sunday said all the primary health centres will soon be equipped with facilities like tele-consultancy and telemedicine.

Addressing an event on the occasion of ‘Universal Health Coverage (UHC) Day 2022’ in Varanasi, Chief Minister Adityanath said, ”Health services must be linked with technology. Over 4,600 primary health centres (PHCs) of the state will be linked with all medical colleges, district hospitals of the state as well as Sanjay Gandhi Postgraduate Institute of Medical Sciences (SGPGI) and King George’s Medical University (KGMU), Lucknow. For this, health workers of the state will also be specially trained.” He also said that soon every health and wellness centre in the state will be connected with the facility of teleconsultation. Adityanath was addressing a conclave commemorating the UHC Day in Varanasi. The event was organised by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. ”Also, we are installing health ATMs at all PHCs for telemedicine. Over 4,600 primary health centres of the state will be connected with health ATMs, which will provide the facility of testing 60 types of diseases at a single centre. For this, proper training will also be provided to the paramedical staff,” Adityanath said.

In his address, the chief minister said that Kashi is the city of Lord Shiva and is also the birthplace of Lord Dhanvantari. ”This holy city is the workplace of the world’s most popular leader Prime Minister Narendra Modi and this workshop concerning health in Kashi will give a new message to the country,” he said.

Quoting the theme of the conclave ‘To build the world, we want a healthy future for all’, Adityanath said, ”India always worked towards the welfare and upliftment of all without discriminating on the basis of caste, creed or religion following (the mantra of) ‘Sarve Bhavantu Sukhina, Sarve Santu Niramaya’. India propagated yoga and as a result, over 200 countries in the world are leading a healthy lifestyle. Our country is being seen as a big hub of health and wellness centres.” Showering praises on Prime Minister Modi, the chief minister said, ”During the world’s biggest pandemic, India’s health infrastructure was not as strong as it was in many developed countries of the world. But, our prime minister took timely decisions to deal with the crisis… and India’s approach towards Covid became a model for the world.” ”During the second Covid wave, we realised the usefulness and power of community health officers (CHO). We formed 72,000 teams in UP at that time. Each team included 10 to 15 people, including ANMs, ASHA workers, public representatives and officers. As a result, India gave the best model of Covid management to the world, which was widely appreciated,” he said. Adityanath described the Health and Wellness Centre, Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission, Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission and Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana as the four strong pillars of the health system. Representatives of 22 states were present in the conclave, including health officials of Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Chandigarh, Chhattisgarh, Dadra Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, Goa, Gujarat, Jammu and Kashmir, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Odisha, Punjab, Sikkim, and Telangana, the UP government said in a statement. Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Mansukh Mandaviya was also present during the conclave. In a tweet in Hindi, Mandaviya said, ”During the first CHO conference, we came across many such topics through which we can strengthen the primary health services. By working on the new suggestions that came out in this two-day conference, we will build a healthy and strong India under the leadership of the Prime Minister @NarendraModi.” ”In this conference, a portal was launched, which will help train and monitor CHOs, along with Tele-MANAS and wellness guidelines were also released. I thank the ministers, officers, CHOs of all the states and UTs for participating in this important discussion,” he said in another tweet.