Telehealth Project for COVID India is the joint effort of Health Committee, PHD Chamber, Rotary club of Delhi Central, BAPIO Training Academy (BTA), UK and Ujala Cygnus Healthcare Services to provide the Tele-Consultation & Tele-Reporting (internet and mobile based) services and support Indian health care professionals looking after COVID / Non-Covid patients. The Tele Medicine Centre was inaugurated at Ujala Cygnus Healthcare Services, Burari, New Delhi.

The telemedicine centre was inaugurated by Shri. Satyendar Kumar Jain, Hon’ble Minister of Health & Family Welfare, Govt. of NCT of Delhi & Shri. Dilip Kr. Pandey, Chief Whip Legislative Assembly & MLA Timarpur Assembly.

The inauguration ceremony was also graced with the presence of Mr. Sanjay Aggarwal, President, PHDCCI, Mr. Joginder Sukhija, Secretary, Sant Nirankari Mission , Dr. Subramanian, Chair, Health Committee, PHD Chamber & Medical Advisor, Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals, Dr.Shuchin Bajaj, Founder Director, Ujala Cygnus Healthcare Services, Mr. Anup Mittal, District Governor (2021-22), Rotary club of Delhi Central,  Prof. Parag Singhal, Executive Director, BAPIO Training Academy & Co- Chair, Health Committee, PHD Chamber (Virtually), Prof. Harvinder Popli, President, RCDC (2021-22)& Co-Chair, Health Committee, PHDCCI, Mr. Saurabh Sanyal, Secretary General, PHDCCI and the session was moderated by Mr. Vivek Seigell, ASG, PHDCCI.

PHD Chamber, Rotary Club of Delhi Central, BAPIO Training Academy (BTA) and Ujala Cygnus Healthcare Services signed MoU on 12^th August 2021 to start the telemedicine centre at Ujala Cygnus Healthcare Services where BTA will provide free of charge telemedicine service of their international doctors to Ujala Cygnus Healthcare Services and PHD Chamber & RCDC will act as a facilitator.

While congratulating the efforts of Sant Nirankari Mission for supporting the government to set up such huge Covid centre facility, Shri. Satyendar Kumar Jain, Hon’ble Minister of Health & Family Welfare, Govt. of NCT of Delhi thanked PHDCCI, Rotary Club & BTA for initiating the telemedicine service.  Hon’ble Minister further mentioned that this is one of the largest Covid care facility temporary (make shift) with 308 ICU beds with ventilators. We provide care and empathy to our patients at this centre. Hon’ble Minister said that in this facility till date no death has been registered and now telemedicine will increase the confidence of Indian doctors and it will also serve as a mutual knowledge sharing platform for UK doctors too. Hon’ble Minister further said that this type of platform should be expanded at all levels by using the innovative digital technology.

Shri. Dilip Kr. Pandey, Chief Whip Legislative Assembly & MLA Timarpur Assembly appreciated the efforts of Ujala Cygnus Healthcare Services, PHDCCI, Rotary Club and BTA for joining hands together to start the digital healthcare services which will ultimately reduce the burden on the Indian healthcare professionals and simultaneously work as a preparatory facility in case of the third wave.

Speaking on the initiative, Mr. Sanjay Aggarwal, President, PHDCCI, welcomed Hon’ble Minister for sparing his valuable time to inaugurate the center and other dignitaries present physically as well as through virtual platform. He congratulated all the partners for taking this wonderful step and mentioned that rural India, where the access to medical specialists opinion and advance healthcare amenities are limited, telemedicine will bring access of healthcareand specialist doctors while reducing the time of consultations and improve the quality of healthcare services. It will also provide psychological support to the exhausted Indian healthcare professionals enabling safe & best quality within shortest possible time.

Dr. Subramanian, Chair, Health Committee, PHD Chamber & Medical Advisor, Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals said that technology determines excellence and convenience in healthcare. We at Apollo started telemedicine way back in 2005 and offer services at the highest altitude. I recall initiating this last year with Dr Singhal and Mr. Sanjay Aggarwal. This can truly revolutionize remote online consultation, diagnosis and follow up

Prof. Parag Singhal, Executive Director, BAPIO Training Academy & Co- Chair, Health Committee, PHD Chambersaid that providing care for patients with Covid and non Covid became a significant challenge especially during second wave of the pandemic. However, it also offered opportunities and one opportunity which was embraced by all the health system was Telemedicine. It has become a widely accepted practice and now is the key component of ‘affordable healthcare’ much needed during the times of economic crisis. Given the finite resources; efficient, effective and equitable healthcare is needed and we must all look at different ways of working to address the healthcare challenges.

Dr Shuchin Bajaj, Founder & Director, Ujala Cygnus Group of Hospitals said that this is our yet another step for third-wave preparation. This time we will be working closely with British Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (BAPIO), who all are testing specialists in the UK. They will connect with us online and help to treat critical patients (both COVID and non-COVID), who will be requiring ICU admission.  We are happy that we are collaborating with the Delhi Government, Rotary Club of Delhi Central and PHD chamber of commerce for this noble initiative. When the COVID cases suddenly start increasing, it overwhelms the whole healthcare infrastructure. In such a scenario, these international experts will help us. They have also experienced third wave in the UK, where the mortality rate was quite low all because of their efforts. Therefore, this experience will also help us to combat third wave in India too.

Mr. Joginder Sukhija, Secretary, Sant Nirankari Mission mentioned that primary medical care is the basic right of every patient. Sadly healthcare services are not easily available for all in India.  With the advancement of technology, telemedicine has proved to be a boon for connecting urban providers with rural patients, particularly those who lack reliable transportation, especially in the times of pandemic. Sant Nirakari mission is trying to bridge this distance between doctors and underserved patients by establishing such centers with digital technology.

Prof. Harvinder Popli, President, RCDC (2021-22) & Co-Chair, Health Committee, PHDCCI said that telemedicine is  an upcoming field in India and could play a major role  in making healthcare accessible And affordable . It can play a pivotal role in anticipating epidemics.” This can be possible by studying the electronic medical records of the population and make a combined assessment of the health of the society. “Information technology and telemedicine can be used to inform, influence and motivate individuals and population organizations on health, health-related issues and adoption of healthy lifestyles. It can be a very important tool for the evaluation and monitoring of healthcare services.

These unprecedented times of a pandemic pose unique challenges in providing healthcare. Though telemedicine will not solve them all, but it is a boon in a scenario like this, where in the healthcare professionals and the patients are at a huge risk of being exposed to the deadly virus.

Thanks to easy access to technology, patients can now be monitored at home, with doctors tracking their progress and intervening if needed. Healthcare is shifting from hospital to home, giving patients the ultimate access to care 24/7 via mobile phones. We at Rotary club are committed to serve the community, and this telemedicine centre is a baby step by RCDC for making healthcare accessible, affordable and available for the masses.

Mr. Saurabh Sanyal, Secretary General, PHDCCI gave a formal vote of thanks to all the dignitaries present for sparing their valuable time and mentioned that this service will help reduce the burden of exhausted Indian healthcare professionals and also been a mutual learning experience on various aspects of the medical profession.