September 26, 2023
Cipla initiated drone services to deliver medicines to difficult-to-reach terrains.
Cipla Limited has unveiled an innovative initiative in partnership with Skye Air Mobility. This initiative involves using drones to facilitate the swift and efficient delivery of crucial medications, specifically cardiac, respiratory, and other essential chronic therapies, to hospitals and pharmacies in Himachal Pradesh, India.
Cipla is the first major Indian pharmaceutical company to embrace drone-based deliveries for the timely distribution of medications to remote regions. The primary goal behind this initiative is to address challenges such as delivery delays, temperature fluctuations that can impact cold chain products, and the potential risks associated with conventional road transportation.
During the initial implementation phase, Cipla succeeded by conducting several drone deliveries in Himachal Pradesh, covering distances of approximately 50 kilometres in less than 25 minutes each. These achievements are noteworthy considering the adverse weather conditions prevalent in the region, which often disrupt traditional transportation routes.
Cipla has ambitious plans to expand and scale this service further. The company intends to extend its drone-based medication delivery to hospitals and broaden its market coverage to include inaccessible and rugged terrains, such as those in Uttarakhand and the Northeastern regions of India. This strategic move underscores Cipla's commitment to advancing healthcare accessibility and ensuring that critical medications reach those in need, regardless of geographical challenges.
December 06, 2022
Ten million patients registered in eSanjeevani, a national telemedicine service, in approximately five weeks
The Government of India announced that nearly 10 million people registered in eSanjeevani within five weeks. Further, the government announced that nearly 80 million teleconsultations had been registered. eSanjeevani is an alternative to physical consultations and is a digital platform.
eSanjeevani was considered to be the world's largest government-owned telemedicine platform. There are two verticals in eSanjeevani, the first vertical is eSanjeevaniAB-HWC, and the second vertical is eSanjeevaniOPD.
More than 222,000 specialists, doctors, and healthcare workers are onboarded in eSanjeevani.
eSanjeevaniAB-HWC is aimed at bridging the difference between the urban and rural divide. It is aimed at providing telecommunications services and helping citizens avail the benefits of the Ayushman Bharat Scheme. It is a Hub and Spoke model, where Health and Wellness Centers' (HWCs) are set up at state levels and are provided services from the hub at the zonal level, which comprises physicians and specialists. More than 100,000 Health and Wellness Centres are mapped to 14,188 hubs, and 71 million citizens were served with telecommunications.
eSanjeevaniOPD provides consultations via laptops, smartphones, and tablets. It enrolled 2,22,026 specialists, doctors, and health workers. This platform has a record of serving more than 430,000 patients in a single day.
Also read: India healthcare system
2.5 million people in India to benefit from accessible, quality care as Abbott upgrades 75 healthcare centers; aiming to help the Modi government's Ayushman Bharat Initiative
Abbott has announced that it has agreed to upgrade 75 healthcare centers in India in the states of Maharashtra, Goa, Himachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Odisha, and Jharkhand. Abbott partnered with Americares India Foundation to upgrade 75 Primary Health Centres (PHCs) to Health and Wellness Centres (HWCs).
Abbott further announced that these centers are critical for supporting the Modi government's Ayushman Bharat Initiative.
Abbott has announced that sixteen PHCs were already upgraded across Maharashtra, Goa, Himachal Pradesh, and Chhattisgarh benefiting nearly 500,000 people. Abbott and Americares India Foundation aim to complete the upgradation of another 59 PHCs by early 2024 in the states, including Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, and Jharkhand.
HWCs aim to improve access to care, support local communities, and reduce health threats and the burden of non-communicable diseases (NCDs), which account for 61% of all deaths in India.
In addition, to upgrade from PHCs to HWCs, Abbott also announced that it aims to increase healthcare workers' capacity building and patient awareness of NCDs and infectious diseases. With this initiative, the low-income population can benefit from improved health awareness and care and help in improved healthcare outcomes.