Digital Health Mission: 5 pointers that will secure your digital health record

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission on Monday, which will offer individuals with a digital Health ID that would store their health information. The digital Health ID’s national deployment coincides with the National Health Authority’s (NHA) celebration of the third anniversary of the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY).

Over one lakh unique Health IDs have currently been established under the National Digital Health Mission (NDHM), which was first launched on a trial basis on August 15th across six states and Union territories.

Digital health ID: Key things you should know

-Based on the foundations laid down in the form of Jan Dhan, Aadhaar and Mobile (JAM) trinity and other digital initiatives of the government, PM-DHM will create a seamless online platform through the provision of a wide-range of data, information and infrastructure services, duly leveraging open, interoperable, standards-based digital systems while ensuring the security, confidentiality and privacy of health-related personal information.

This mission will create interoperability within the digital health ecosystem, similar to the role played by the Unified Payments Interface in revolutionising payments.

– The key components of PM-DHM include a Health ID – unique 14-digit health identification number- for every citizen that will also work as their health account. The national Health ID will be a repository of all health-related information of a person. The health ID will enable access and exchange of longitudinal health records of citizens with their consent.

-This health account will contain details of every test, every disease, the doctors visited, the medicines taken and the diagnosis. This information will be very useful as it is portable and easily accessible even if the patient shifts to new place and visits a new doctor.

-The Health ID is created by using a person’s basic details and mobile number or Aadhaar number. Personal health records can be linked and viewed with the help of a mobile application, a Healthcare Professionals Registry (HPR), and Healthcare Facilities Registries (HFR).