Digital health revolution in India
Consider a scenario where every patient has a unique health account that seamlessly links all their health interactions digitally. Upon entering a healthcare facility and sharing the account number at reception, their information is instantly registered, reducing wait times. During the consultation, the doctor accesses the patient’s comprehensive medical history (with their consent) and issues a digital prescription, securely stored in the patient’s mobile app. Subsequently, follow-up care is delivered via teleconsultations, minimising recurring travel. Such an inter-operable system paves the way for a future where people experience convenient access to services, cost-effective healthcare and uninterrupted clinical support.
This vision is being realised through ABDM (Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission) – a national initiative by the National Health Authority to create a digitally connected health system that allows patients, doctors and hospitals to share medical information easily and securely. The building blocks driving this ecosystem include the unique Ayushman Bharat Health Account (ABHA) for every citizen, Health registries for healthcare professionals, as also facilities and Health Information Exchange and Consent Manager (HIE-CM) to facilitate information exchange across digital systems.
With 740 million ABHA addresses generated and 52,000 facilities linking patient records in India (as of November 2024), the potential benefits are significant. For patients, this translates into greater empowerment – easier access to healthcare services, better control over health data and significant savings in both time and costs through reduced travel and a minimised risk of repeated treatments. Healthcare providers gain from streamlined administrative processes, improved clinical decision-making, and the ability to provide value-based care. Importantly, philanthropic organisations and corporate leaders can enable these benefits at scale when their initiatives use ABHA to capture patient health data in every healthcare interaction.
Digital health in India: At its core, digital health refers to using health information to enhance healthcare delivery and efficiency at all levels – patients, doctors, facilities, regions and countries. Its transformative potential lies in improving the accessibility, quality, and affordability of care, while reducing costs. For India, where geographical barriers, overburdened health infrastructure and uneven access to care have long posed challenges, digital healthcare is a crucial pathway towards quality care at the last mile.
Digital innovation is steadily reshaping healthcare in India, with 400 million Indians, spanning Tier I to Tier III cities, utilising services such as online pharmacies, tele-consultations, e-diagnostics and fitness applications. The market is projected to expand from $2.7 billion in 2022 to $37 billion by 2030, presenting immense scope for harnessing digital health to improve outcomes.
Enabling factors: India’s strategic focus on developing robust digital public infrastructure (DPI) has been key to this transformation. DPIs are foundational systems, such as digital identity (Aadhaar), secure payment mechanisms (UPI) and consent-driven data exchanges (Digi Locker) – that help deliver digital services at scale to achieve societal goals.
Aadhaar has empowered nearly 95 per cent of the population, as they can now digitally verify their identity, while UPI has transformed the payment landscape, processing over 15 billion transactions in September 2024. Their impact, however, goes beyond financial inclusion, facilitating access to essential services, including healthcare.
The Covid-19 pandemic marked a critical inflection point. India rapidly shifted to digital health solutions in response to restrictions on physical movement and the urgent need for healthcare solutions. The CoWIN portal, supported by the Aarogya Setu app, played a pivotal role in managing the country’s massive vaccination drive. At the same time, telehealth platforms like eSanjeevini saw a surge in users, underscoring the growing demand for digital healthcare services.
The crisis highlighted the need for a cohesive digital health ecosystem. Covid-19 underscored the importance of ensuring continuity of care amidst a shifting disease landscape, proactively monitoring public health, and integrating fragmented systems of medicine to deliver co-ordinated care. Thus, building upon the National Digital Health Blueprint of 2019 and the rapid advancements catalysed by the pandemic, the government’s efforts culminated in the launch of ABDM in 2021.
The way forward: In this evolving landscape, digital health is set to shape the future of healthcare. An ABDM-enabled ecosystem will enhance every stage of patient care – simplifying registration, enabling quality care through comprehensive medical records, and facilitating follow-ups via remote consultations.
Collaboration will be key to unlocking the full value of this nationwide initiative. Philanthropists, innovators, healthcare providers and the health industry must join forces to strengthen use cases, establish effective tech-support mechanisms and generate patient demand to scale the impact of ABDM-enabled digital health.