J P Nadda, Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare launched two major Digital initiatives to provide easy access to health services to the public: GIS-enabled HMIS application and the self-printing of e-CGHS cards, here today. Launching these initiatives of the Health Ministry, the Union Minister stated that the Health Ministry remains committed to strengthening public health systems and providing user-friendly health services in the country. He further stated that that this will provide a tremendous opportunity to further strengthen and enhance the reach of key interventions. Terming these as significant and forward looking steps contributing to Digital India, Shri J P Nadda said: “The initiative will not only monitor the performance and quality of the health services being provided under the NHM, but will also provide effective healthcare to the rural population throughout the country”.
The GIS-enabled HMIS services will provide comprehensive data on a GIS platform on 1.6 lakh Government Health facilities spread across the country. The project has been developed with the objective of enabling the effective usage of the HMIS application, enhancing analytical capabilities of States/UTs and providing a geographical display of HMIS data using GIS. The application also has scope of incorporating map layers of roads and water bodies which will provide comprehensive information regarding health facilities and disease vulnerable areas of the country. At present, the application is available in login domain of HMIS portal. It is planned to put it in public domain in near future. Moreover, the mapping provides data only on public health facilities presently, which shall soon be expanded to cover private facilities also, the Union Minister informed.
Health Management Information System (HMIS) is a web-based monitoring system that has been put in place by Ministry of Health & Family Welfare (MoHFW) to monitor its health programmes and provide key inputs for policy formulation and interventions. It was launched during October, 2008 with uploading of district consolidated figures. To make HMIS more robust and effective and in order to facilitate local level monitoring, “facility based reporting” was initiated since April, 2011. At present, 1.94 lakh health facilities (across all States/UTs) are uploading facility wise data on monthly basis on HMIS web portal. Data are presently being made available to various stakeholders in the form of standard & customized reports, factsheets, score- cards etc. HMIS data are widely used by the Ministry and States for policy planning, monitoring and supervision purpose.
The Union Health Minister, while launching the self-printing of the E-CGHS card, stated that this will provide ease and access to all those beneficiaries such as the pensioners who may find it difficult to go to the CGHS centres for renewal, and in the event of loss/misplacement of the card. As this can be printed from any location once the process of application based on authentic documents has been approved, this enables easy reprinting by the beneficiary himself/herself. The beneficiary can access this facility by visiting the CGHS portal at cghs.nic.in where simple steps for this have been enumerated. Also present at the meeting were Shri B P Sharma, Secretary (HFW), and senior officers of the Health Ministry.