Reimagining Healthcare

As tech, game-changing policies, and private sector involvement transform the healthcare landscape, what are the key drivers today that are creating a new world for every Indian by 2047?

- NEETU CHANDRA SHARMA

IN DELHI-NCR , as Dr Aashish Chaudhry, Chief Orthopedic Surgeon at Aakash Healthcare, completed his 100th robotic knee surgery of 2024, he couldn’t stop marvelling at the millimetre-by-millimetre real-time adjustments he could make with the robotic arm, and the lower soft-tissue trauma created as opposed to traditional surgery. The patient would be up and about in a couple of days, although full f lexibility could take up to one-and-a-half years as atrophied muscles need time to recover.

In Kolkata, a retired corporate executive told his buddies at the club, “Sorry, I have to go home now.” What! They exclaimed. It’s just 9 pm! The 65-year-old retorted, “After my recent illness, my son gave me this wristwatch, and he can monitor my health and bedtime from Bengaluru!”

From robots to wristwatches, change is coursing through India’s healthcare sector.

Amitabh Dube, Country President and Managing Director of pharmaceuticals major Novartis India, a unit of Switzerland’s Novartis, sees healthcare become more patient-centric and technology-driven. Dube is betting on three crucial trends: the digital revolution, universal healthcare coverage, and a focus on preventive and targeted therapy.

“Telemedicine and integration of AI will improve accessibility, particularly in remote areas. AIdriven diagnostics, personalised treatment plans, and virtual consultations will allow patients to receive timely care without extensive travel,” says Dube.

But this transformation can happen only if there is a database and someone to pay for the technology. Enter the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission, which is creating a unified health information system of electronic health records. Ayushman Bharat aims to offer a cover of up to ₹5 lakh per family to 100 million families for secondary and tertiary hospitalisation.