The 10BedICU Project was launched today by Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio in 12 districts of Nagaland in a programme held at Capital Cultural Centre, Kohima.
In his address, Rio said “the State Government, as also in many similarly situated places across the country, had found it difficult to make ICU facilities operational in District Hospitals other than our Naga Hospital Authority Kohima (NHAK)” and expressed his gratitude to the project partners and the Department of Health and Family Welfare for the successful completion of the ICUs in the 12 districts.
Under the project, 10BedICU wards have been set up in the District Hospital of Dimapur, Kohima, Kiphire, Longleng, Mokokchung, Mon, Noklak, Peren, Phek, Tuensang, Wokha and Zunheboto.
Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio speaking at the launch of 10BedICU at Capital Cultural Centre, Kohima.
An MoU between Department of Health and Family welfare and 10BedICU NGOs was signed on 21 July 2022 and since then, the ICU wards have been completed in a record time.
Speaking on Tele-ICU Hub, which he had inaugurated earlier in the day at Naga Hospital Authority Kohima (NHAK), the CM said that the project has innovatively addressed the shortage of specialist doctors through the Tele-ICU hub.
The available specialist doctors will now be available to monitor and provide critical care services remotely over high-speed internet connections using cameras with their physical presence, he added.
He personally appealed the team to deepen the engagement not only in the health sector but in using technology to meet the challenges of development attracting investments and promoting entrepreneurship eco-system in remoter parts of the state.
“It has provided quality equipment – multi channel monitors, ventilators, infusion pumps, ICU Beds – and also addressed the need for civil works etc,” Rio said.
While appreciating Srikanth Nadhamuni, chairman of 10BedICU, and Nandan Nilekani, chairman of INFOSYS, for their constant support and Vinod Khosla, founder partner at Khosla Ventures, for funding the 10-Bed ICU project and Tele ICU Hub, the Chief Minister encouraged the team of doctors, nurses and technicians to use technology to meet the challenges of development and attracting investment in remote mountainous areas like Nagaland.
“My government has been committed to facilitating our people to achieve their fullest potential by providing improved education, healthcare and core infrastructure” Rio added.
The chief host, S Pangnyu Phom, Minister of H&FW, in his address assured the district hospitals of high-speed internet connectivity to ensure Tele-ICU services and urged all public hospitals to capitalise and amplify their resources through the noble venture.
He also requested eGovernment Foundation and esteemed donors to set up more ICU facilities in strategic sub-district hospitals, Christian Institute of Health Science and Research (CIHSR), Dimapur and in recently carved out districts – Chümoukedima, Niuland, Shamator and Tseminyu.
The project has a potential to transform the provision of critical healthcare services in Govt. hospitals in the State. I thank Mr. @NandanNilekani, Mr. @srikanth_nadha and Mr. @vkhosla for the support and generous funding of the @10BedICU project and Tele-ICU hub in Nagaland pic.twitter.com/sFdK8lfsgZ
— Neiphiu Rio (@Neiphiu_Rio) January 6, 2023
Joining the programme virtually, Vinod Khosla stated that the successful completion of the 10-bed ICU project with Tele ICU Hub in less than a year is a big achievement. He said the project is a precursor for better and cheaper healthcare. Khosla said that the only way for access to quality healthcare for the remote rural population is through the use of innovative technologies and standardised medical protocol.
Nandan Nilekani, Chairman, INFOSYS, also addressing the launch programme virtually, stated that the project is a part of a long series of projects in India of creating Digital Public Goods, public goods for the society and the people using digital technology such as Aadhaar, DBT, UPI, etc. He added that technology used properly for the benefit of people is the only way to build an equitable and inclusive society where everyone has access to education, health and career advancement.
Srikanth Nadhamuni, chairman of 10BedICU.org. (Credit: 10 Bed ICU/YouTube)
Srikanth Nadhamuni, expressed his delight of working with the Government of Nagaland and stated that the pace at which the project was completed was incredible, making it the first state where it has launched 10 Bed ICU in every District Hospital within one year.
He shared that 10BedICU began during the second wave of COVID-19 when he started getting calls requesting for ventilators for patients. During that time, Dr Sudharshan Hanumappa, Chairman of Karuna Trust, told him that the problem was not just in urban areas but also in rural areas and in small towns where there were acute shortages of ICUs.
When asked if the foundation has plans for other initiatives in the state, the chairman of 10BedICU Org said, “Many many projects to do” and that the organisation is actively looking for more initiatives.
He explained that the first pillar is equipment to set up 10 Bed ICU, which is state-of-the-art equipment with the ventilators being imported from Switzerland and having a three-year warranty.
The second pillar being the Tele-ICU at NHAK which is connected to the District Hospitals so that all the Hospitals can have access to specialized services. He further explained that Tele Hub at NHAK and District Hospitals is connected through cloud software and Google has offered its software to Nagaland for free for one year.
“What we have built and what we have deployed in Nagaland today is world class,” Nadhamuni stated.
The 10BedICU Project is an innovative Public Private Partnership project between the Department of Health and Family Welfare, Government of Nagaland, and 10BedICU partner NGOs (eGov Foundation and Karuna Trust) led by eGovFoundation.
The 10 Bed ICU partner raises funds through donors in India and abroad to provide medical equipment, technology (software & hardware), and capacity building for medical and hospital staff. And the Govt provides the physical infrastructure, human resources, and other operational expenses to run the ICU units set up under the project.
To oversee the project, a Project Management Unit with senior bureaucrats, including the Home Commissioner and Health Secretary, and members from 10 Bed NGO partners was constituted. In Nagaland, the Health Department also created a sub-committee consisting of senior officials from the Health Department to assist the PMU members and ensure speedy implementation.
While HDFC Bank Parivartan funded the 10BedICU ward in Dimapur District Hospital, Vinod Khosla is the donor of the 10 Bed ICU wards in all the other districts. Vinod Khosla also funded the Tele-ICU Hub.
Karuna Trust and Nagaland Gandhi Ashram are the field NGO partners of the project in Nagaland. Hamilton Medical Switzerland also donated one ventilator for every two ventilators procured.
Read more: 10BedICU to be launched in 12 district hospitals in Nagaland on Friday
10BedICU is made possible by eGovernments Foundation’s CARE platform, a cloud-based open-source patient management tool, as well as smart capacity management software and patient management software.
These form a Tele ICU module that runs on Google Cloud’s secure, scalable and reliable infrastructure and can be seamlessly accessed in real-time by medical professionals at the TeleICU hub at NHAK and the connected spoke hospitals.
The 10BedICU is being implemented in eight states, including Karnataka, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Manipur, Assam, Nagaland, Sikkim and Meghalaya. 200 ICU units have been set up across the project states. The Tele-ICU Hub and spoke model is showing promising signs of evolving into a transformational healthcare model, especially in resource constraints and remote locations.
