Mathura gets its first Health ATM: How these machines can revolutionise medicine in India

Oct 26, 2022 - 14:30

0 93

Mathura gets its first Health ATM: How these machines can revolutionise medicine in India

Medicine has come a really long way and that is evident as a health ATM was installed at the Mathura district hospital on Tuesday.

The health ATM was inaugurated by former Uttar Pradesh minister Shrikant Sharma, who said that such machines would be installed in every district hospital of Uttar Pradesh.

The installation of health ATMs across the populous state is part of the Uttar Pradesh government’s plan to rejuvenate health infrastructure.

So, what are health ATMs, how do they work, what are their benefits? We take a closer look at this new technological advancement in the health sector.

What are health ATMS?

Just like an Automated Teller Machine (ATM) in a bank, a health ATM is a touch-screen kiosk hardware, designed for managing health-related information.

In very simple words, it’s a machine that can carry out several pathological tests on a person, dispense medicines, and help patients interact with doctors virtually.

Doctors and medical experts observe that a Health ATM can conduct a check-up for 23 diseases in 15 minutes.

The machine can also check the patients’ condition, including their height, weight, body temperature, blood glucose, blood pressure, and oxygen saturation levels. It will also conduct electrocardiogram (ECG).

The Health ATM is integrated with medical devices to conduct neurology, pulmonary, gynaecology, and cardiology tests.

The Yogi Adityanath-led government has said that it will install as many as 4,600 health ATMs in all primary and community centres across the state to make health services more feasible to the masses.

The Uttar Pradesh government is installing Health ATMs manufactured and designed by Mumbai headquartered health-tech company, Yolohealth. This company is also responsible for Health ATMs in other cities.

Benefits of Health ATMs

There are several benefits to installing Health ATMs. Experts state that Health ATMs will help in ensuring medical services to all people — in every nook and corner of the country.

As the machine enables patients to connect with doctors virtually, it will bridge the gap of quality healthcare, especially in rural areas, and help patients see well-qualified doctors even from remote locations.

It will also enable easier access to medical facilities Prof Rakesh Kapoor, director, Medanta Lucknow was quoted as telling Hindustan Times, “Today everybody wants health services’ delivery at their doorstep and the Health ATM will help realise this need.”

Furthermore, as people live a quick-paced life, this machine will help them save their precious time and avail of services and tests without having to wait long periods.

“The motive behind providing the facility of health ATMs 24×7 is to give benefit to those people who reach home late due to work. People will be able to get their full body check-up done in 10 minutes at a Health ATM,” said a health official from the Uttar Pradesh government.

The machines also make health facilities more accessible as they are not exorbitant. While in some cases, a patient can get 30 tests done for Rs 200, in other places, a patient can undergo 18 various health check-ups for a nominal fee of Rs 100.

Apart from these benefits, the Health ATMs will also maintain records of registered patients, including their lab reports, which they can access any time, any place.

It will also help doctors to check and access the patient’s past health records during a video call.

“The biggest benefit of Health ATMs is that it is a cloud-connected platform that enables telemedicine so that a good doctor can see patients in rural areas. Meanwhile, paramedics can be trained to use this simple machine for performing diagnostic tests,” The Times of India quoted Premjeet Kumar, CEO of Yolohealth, as saying.

Not the first

The Mathura Health ATM is not the first in the state. Earlier, in September, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had inaugurated the first health ATM in Gorakhpur at the Chargawan Community Health Centre.

आज जनपद गोरखपुर में Health ATM का शुभारंभ हुआ है।
जनपद वासियों को हार्दिक बधाई!
स्वास्थ्य के क्षेत्र में तकनीक का क्या महत्व हो सकता है, Health ATM उसी का यह एक छोटा सा रूप है। pic.twitter.com/NRW0pUu32B
— Yogi Adityanath (@myogiadityanath) September 14, 2022

Similar Health ATMs have also been installed by the Indian Railways at various stations where passengers can undergo medical check-up of 16 parameters (basic) at a cost of Rs 50 and 18 parameters (basic+HB+Sugar) for Rs 100.