IT companies willing to work with State to implement such a system for the benefit of COVID-19 patients
On Thursday, chap. Swamy, a CPSU employee, had to take his 65-year-old father, who tested positive for COVID-19, to at least seven hospitals to look for an oxygen-equipped bed.
After about an hour of frantic searching, Mr. Swamy was finally able to have his panting father admitted to a notified private hospital.
“Shouldn’t there be a platform or portal that provides the correct and updated information on the beds available in the hospitals?” asks Mr. Swamy.
With the rise in COVID-19 cases and the resulting shortage of beds, oxygen and life-saving drugs, there is a growing demand for a detailed and comprehensive portal or app that provides accurate information in real time.
Role of IT
“The lack of authentic information confuses people. The state government and the district administration do their best to ensure this. What is needed, however, is more authentic, updated, and real-time information. This is where information technology comes in, ”says Ravi Eswarapu, former president of the IT Association of Andhra Pradesh (ITAAP).
“The state government has portals, but the information is not updated. Sometimes they don’t work. What we need is a portal modeled on the Delhi government, ”says EAS Sarma, a former union secretary.
Industry experts say the portal should provide comprehensive real-time information.
Beds availability
“Aside from the summary and status of the cases, the focus should be on displaying the availability of beds in each of the COVID-named hospitals, with specific information on oxygenated beds, regular beds, ICU beds and ventilated beds. And most importantly, it should be done in real time, ”they say.
“The portal should also contain details of test laboratories and vaccination centers with telephone numbers, addresses and times for tests and vaccinations. There should also be a number of telemedicines available, ”they say.
The experts also say the portal won’t be complete without an FAQ column with answers to all COVID-related issues.
Initial focus
“Such a portal is the order of the day. The IT sector can intervene if the state government or the district administration so wishes. It can be difficult to get such a comprehensive portal up and running right away. However, this can be done in phases, with an initial focus on bed availability, ”said Sridhar Kosaraju, ITAAP President The Hindu.
“It can be worked out in collaboration with the government on a war basis, but private hospitals need to come in to update the data in real time. You don’t have to focus on guessing. However, patient entry and exit should be updated in real time. To ensure this, the government should appoint a node officer, ”he said.
Fluentgrid experts, who have already set up a COVID Command Control Center at GVMC, said the CCC could also be powered up and integrated with the portal to improve COVID care management.
BMC model
Mr Sarma suggested that the state government could follow the system passed by the Bombay Municipal Corporation, which initiated the patient outreach model by creating a patient-friendly system. As part of this system, the BMC commissioner has been able to control the COVID-19 surge, he added.