“CONNECTING THE PATIENT ON VIDEO WITH A DOCTOR IS NOT DIGITAL HEALTH, THERE IS MUCH MORE TO IT”
Future Medicine India|October 2021
Digital health is the way forward for the world at a time when it is going through one of its most uncertain phases during which mobility has been affected, the economy is in peril and human health is in danger. In June, New York Stock Exchange saw the listing of a company that can truly impact the future of world healthcare in this context. UpHealth Holdings, Inc., which was born through a reverse merger of four companies, combines the four essential components of digital healthcare — a low cost, but accountable system of care, an integrated care management platform, a tech-enabled behavioral health service unit and a full-service e-pharmacy capability. The new entity, which began trading on the NYSE at $9.29 a share on June 10th, was formed by the merger of Glocal Healthcare, a social venture and one of India’s pioneer digital health companies, and three US-based entities Thrasys, BHS & Transformations, and MedQuest. The company focuses on the three As of future healthcare — access anywhere, affordability for everyone and accountability of health outcomes. The founder of Glocal Healthcare and the chief architect of this new global healthcare fusion, DR SYED SABAHAT AZIM — a physician and former Indian Administrative Service (IAS) official, envisioned this a long time ago when he founded Glocal in 2010. Glocal was conceived as a social enterprise bringing quality healthcare to rural India through a combination of low cost primary and secondary care hospitals and digital dispensaries powered by technology. However, says he, the majority of the world, including people engaged in the service of healthcare, is yet to fully understand ‘digital health’ and ‘telemedicine’. Dr Sabahat says the term digital health is often misinterpreted even by healthcare providers, in an exclusive interview with Editor CH UNNIKRISHNAN.
CH UNNIKRISHNAN.
“CONNECTING THE PATIENT ON VIDEO WITH A DOCTOR IS NOT DIGITAL HEALTH, THERE IS MUCH MORE TO IT”

Glocal, though founded as an Indian technologyled social venture to cater to rural healthcare, has now become a true global entity by merging into UpHealth. What does this transformation mean for Glocal as well as the patient community?

Yes, that’s true. Glocal has become truly global after the merger with UpHealth and we have become live on the NYSE. This has actually strengthened our position as a global player and this will reflect in all the socially relevant healthcare projects that we have been pursuing in several parts of the world.

For instance, we have signed up as consortiums for hospitals and other healthcare projects across continents, including Africa, Asia and even the Americas. As a part of this, one major project — 260 e-PHCs (primary health centres) in the Republic of Congo — will be completed and run in the next three months. We have also signed consortiums for similar and even bigger projects in countries like Namibia, Mongolia, Philippines and the US.

In India, we are now completing a proper 200-bed acute care hospital for the government of Nagaland. This is, in fact, a breakthrough project which was developed out of an innovative model prompted by the Covid-19 crisis after the first wave.

While we were working constantly to improve our concept of digital dispensary, which can be installed in a small space of 200 sq.ft, sometimes even less, within no time, we realised the importance of being prepared to set up even bigger hospitals as quickly if the need arises. So, this project, which we could complete in exactly three months’ time, was another technology-driven leap forward in response to the COVID crisis.

Esta historia es de la edición October 2021 de Future Medicine India.

Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.

Esta historia es de la edición October 2021 de Future Medicine India.

Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.

MÁS HISTORIAS DE FUTURE MEDICINE INDIAVer todo
Early Reports On Omicron Encouraging: Anthony Fauci
Future Medicine India

Early Reports On Omicron Encouraging: Anthony Fauci

Even as the Omicron variant of coronavirus is spreading across the world quickly, early reports suggest that it may cause less severe disease than the Delta variant, says Anthony Fauci, MD, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, US.

time-read
8 minutos  |
December 2021
Air Pollution Reduces 8 Years Of Life Expectancy In India
Future Medicine India

Air Pollution Reduces 8 Years Of Life Expectancy In India

India registers 18 percent of deaths annually due to air pollution and related diseases, while nationwide socioeconomic inequalities persist in asthma diagnosis across India

time-read
10+ minutos  |
December 2021
Future Medicine India

Importance Of Adhering To Covid Appropriate Behaviour

As the efficacy of existing vaccines has been proven to be inadequate against Omicron, our only hope from the jab is to reduce the severity of the disease, highlighting the importance of adhering to covid appropriate behaviour

time-read
10+ minutos  |
December 2021
AstraZeneca's new covid drug AZD7442 shows 83% prevention and 88% treatment efficacy
Future Medicine India

AstraZeneca's new covid drug AZD7442 shows 83% prevention and 88% treatment efficacy

AstraZeneca, which announced the latest data from Phase III trials of its new Covid-19 drug -- AZD7442 -- said both the prevention and outpatient treatment studies showed robust efficacy from a onetime intramuscular (IM) dose of the long-acting antibody combination.

time-read
1 min  |
December 2021
VACCINES IN YOUR POCKET
Future Medicine India

VACCINES IN YOUR POCKET

DR. SAUMYA SWAMINATHAN Cheif Scientist, World Health Organisation

time-read
1 min  |
December 2021
DIABETES, AT CLOSE TO 91 MILLION CASES, ACCOUNTS FOR 25% OF ALL NCDS IN INDIA
Future Medicine India

DIABETES, AT CLOSE TO 91 MILLION CASES, ACCOUNTS FOR 25% OF ALL NCDS IN INDIA

The disease incidence, which increases very rapidly in individuals above 35 years of age, accounts for 12.8 million DALYs, 6.7 million YLDs

time-read
4 minutos  |
December 2021
EXPERTS PREDICT THIRD WAVE IN INDIA WITH MORE THAN A LAKH DAILY CASES IN FEBRUARY
Future Medicine India

EXPERTS PREDICT THIRD WAVE IN INDIA WITH MORE THAN A LAKH DAILY CASES IN FEBRUARY

The active cases have come down as compared July leveld, the threat of new variants is looming large.

time-read
1 min  |
December 2021
END INEQUALITIES TO MEET THE TARGET OF ENDING AIDS
Future Medicine India

END INEQUALITIES TO MEET THE TARGET OF ENDING AIDS

Forty years after the first AIDS case was reported, and 35 years since the first case in India, HIV still threatens us. Today, the world is off track from delivering on the shared commitment to end AIDS by 2030.

time-read
4 minutos  |
December 2021
CONVENTIONAL LINEN IS ONE OF THE BIGGEST CULPRITS IN HOSPITAL ACQUIRED AS WELL AS SURGICAL SITE INFECTIONS
Future Medicine India

CONVENTIONAL LINEN IS ONE OF THE BIGGEST CULPRITS IN HOSPITAL ACQUIRED AS WELL AS SURGICAL SITE INFECTIONS

The ‘green colour’ linen is synonymous with hospitals, as it has been in use for centuries in hospitals world over, especially the conventional healthcare settings. But how many, even in the medical community, are really conscious about the responsibility for and the critical role of this piece of medical accessory in ensuring patient safety? Evidence from most hospitals in India indicates that not many are aware of the standards, and even if they are, not many bother with them. Again, going by real world experience, there exists another paradox. Though the actual cost of the repeated use of the linen is higher than the cost of single-use disposables (recommended in modernday care), it is still being used in a large majority of hospitals and clinics in India — because it is the convention. Therefore, transformation hesitance is more of a mindset issue rather than ignorance or economics. Most in the industry also oppose quality regulations in the country. In a market where hundreds of textile weavers and cloth merchants turned medical mask and accessory manufacturers overnight during the Covid pandemic, the market situation serves the unscrupulous minds who only eye the profits. However, there are a handful of local companies, besides the large organised players, who stick to quality products in this predominently price conscious market due to internal SOPs or pure commitment. For JAMES GEORGE, Founder and Managing Director at Kochi-based Careon Healthcare Solutions, it is more of a personal commitment. In a freewheeling interview with Editor CH UNNIKRISHNAN, George says that the primary reason behind the rise of unscrupulous players in the medical disposables market is lack of awareness among the users and the patients. Edited excerpts:

time-read
5 minutos  |
December 2021
UK approves sotrovimab as new covid treatment for high risk adults
Future Medicine India

UK approves sotrovimab as new covid treatment for high risk adults

The Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), the drug regulator of the UK, has approved sotrovimab, branded as Xevudy, a new biological drug to fight Covid-19. The drug was found effective to reduce the likelihood of hospital admission and death by about 79 percent in high-risk adults.

time-read
3 minutos  |
December 2021