Family health centre in Kerala's first tribal panchayat gets e-Health facility

Idukki (Kerala), Mar 7 (PTI) The remote family health centre in Edamalakudy, Kerala's first tribal panchayat, nestled deep within this hill district's lush forests, now has an e-health facility.

Located about 30 km from the tourist town of Munnar, Edamalakkudy is mainly inhabited by members of the Muthuvan tribal community.

State Health Minister Veena George said on Saturday that the equipment of the FHC with the e-Health system is a major step towards strengthening healthcare services in remote tribal areas.

According to the minister, the e-Health team recently reached Edamalakudy and completed the final phase of work for implementing the digital health system, besides providing training to the hospital staff.

Within a few weeks, the Edamalakudy hospital will become a completely paperless facility, she said.

Unique Health Identification (UHID) cards have already been distributed to residents, the minister said, describing the development as a "dream come true".

With the new system, people from Edamalakudy will be able to book online appointments from the local health centre itself at hospitals in Adimali, the district hospital, the medical college and other healthcare institutions.

With these appointments, patients will receive priority for consultations and won't need to carry their medical records; treatment details will be available digitally at the referral hospitals.

George said the tribal panchayat once had no health facility, and the community had been living deep inside the forest without access to regular medical care.

Ensuring a permanent healthcare system there had been a major challenge, she said, adding that creating permanent posts for doctors and other health workers was the most practical solution.

Accordingly, new posts were created for Edamalakudy and Chattamunnar, and the health centre was eventually established after overcoming several difficulties.

The minister also recalled her visit to Edamalakudy to inaugurate the health centre formally, describing the journey as an unforgettable experience and noting that the warmth and affection of the people there had deeply moved her.

The e-Health implementation team that visited the panchayat consisted of Additional Project Director Dr Mahesh, Joint Directors Dr Ronjan and Akhila Raj, Idukki district project engineer Sheenu Thomas and technical staff member Vishnu, the minister added in a statement. PTI LGK ADB