Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission: Transforming Healthcare in India

The Indian government's push towards digitization and the goal to provide better healthcare services in an organized way has led to the development of the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM). The launch of this mission coincides with NHA’s celebration of the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana’s third anniversary. Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission will develop the required backbone to support the country’s integrated digital health infrastructure.

The Indian healthcare sector is hopeful that this scheme will fill the gap between different stakeholders in the healthcare ecosystem using digital means. While finance, education, and commerce have already benefited from digitization, the healthcare sector was lagging behind. But now, the Indian healthcare sector and people are ready to benefit from this scheme. You can visit the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission website to register yourself, but ensure you first gather the fundamental knowledge about this scheme. This guide covers every detail people must know about the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission, so ensure you read until the end.

What is Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission?

ABDM, or the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission, is a government-backed plan that allows all Indian citizens to store their health records digitally securely. After registration, every individual will be assigned a unique ABHA ID, and all the health records will be linked and stored under it. The best part about this scheme is that participation is voluntary but highly encouraged to enjoy a seamless healthcare experience.

The Ayushman Bharat health card can be downloaded online after successful registration and used while visiting doctors, clinics, or health insurance providers. If you have trouble storing all past health records manually, you should register under this scheme. The Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission app can be downloaded and used to view all your health records digitally in one secure place. It will help people get a smooth treatment experience as they can share their correct health history with doctors without trouble.

ABDM Vision

The core vision of Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission is to ideally create a robust digital healthcare ecosystem that supports universal health coverage. The facility is free for individuals and is 100% secure. The stored healthcare data will only be shared with doctors and other healthcare sector stakeholders after your consent, so you don’t have to worry about any unauthorised access to your personal medical records.

Benefits of Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission

The benefits of Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission UPSC should be known to every Indian citizen. This knowledge will encourage more individuals to sign-up for the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission scheme. If you were wondering what benefits this plan can offer, the following points would answer your question:

• It will help securely share your medical history with doctors and clinics to facilitate the best treatment.
• The plan will also enable the government and healthcare policymakers to be aware of the health conditions of Indian citizens. This data will allow them to design more practical and effective healthcare policies for the nation’s greater good.
• Patients can digitally store all their medical records, like diagnostic test reports, past prescriptions, test results, and more, in one place. It will take away the hassle of manual storage and maintenance.
• Since doctors and other healthcare providers can access their patient’s past medical records using their unique health ID, they will be able to choose the best treatment course.
• ABDM will enhance the management of the healthcare system and medical research, creating a healthy loop between healthcare researchers, patients, doctors, and the government.

Security, digital storage at no cost, and increased convenience are the primary benefits every Indian citizen will get, so ensure you get your unique health ID at the earliest.

How to Register and Apply for Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission?

You can enjoy the benefits of Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission private hospital and public hospital after successful registration of your unique health card account. If you are planning to register and apply for the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission plan, follow the steps shared below.

• Visit the official website (https://hpr.abdm.gov.in/en) to initiate the registration process.
• Once you visit the website, click on the provided link for new registration.
• You can now generate your unique health ID by verifying your process using your Aadhar card.
• Enter the Aadhar number in the next step and provide the OTP you receive in your registered mobile number.

 Note: Your Aadhar must be linked to your mobile number to complete this step.

• Once the OTP verification is done, you can proceed with creating your account.
• Post verification, you can enter your personal details to update your account with the latest information.
• Save the information after carefully reviewing it, and you’re done. When you visit the official ABDM website for Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission online apply, you will be prompted with the next steps to follow so the entire registration remains smooth and straightforward. Keep following the instructions, and the registration will be completed within a few minutes.

Building Blocks of ABDM

The Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission has the following main building blocks:

1. Unique Health ID
   Standardizing the individual identification process across healthcare providers is crucial to ensure that the created medical records are correctly assigned and accessed by the relevant authorities only after the individual’s prior consent. Hence, the system will collect basic details like the individual’s demographic, contact information, family/relationship details, etc., before issuing a unique health ID. The generated ID will be used to identify, authenticate, and thread health records only after taking consent from the respective individual.
2. Healthcare Professionals Registry
   This comprehensive repository will enable healthcare professionals offering healthcare services in traditional and modern medicine systems to become a part of the country’s digital health ecosystem. Once enrolled in this registry, their professional contact details will be easily accessible by ABHA card holders.
3. Health Facility Registry
   This repository will store information about private and public healthcare facility providers, including hospitals, clinics, imaging centers, pharmacies, etc., and make it available to people seeking healthcare services from any part of the country.
4. ABHA Mobile App (PHR)
   PHR is a reliable and secure digital record of health-related information conforming to nationally recognised interoperability standards. It can be quickly drawn from multiple reliable sources while being managed, stored, shared, and controlled by the individual. PHR’s main salient feature is that its stored information is under the individual’s control. PHR supports functions that enable an individual to manage information regarding their healthcare information, including treatment details, longitudinal record, discharge summaries across healthcare facilities, lab reports, treatment details, and more.

All these four building blocks make a strong foundation for Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission, so you can easily rely on it for securely storing your healthcare details online.

Key Components of ABDM

The key components and the building blocks of the popular Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission are the same. The primary components of this plan are the

• ABHA number (unique health ID)
• ABHA app
• Healthcare facility registry for hospitals and clinics
• Healthcare professionals’ registry for Doctors.

You can read about these in detail in the previous section.

What are the objectives of Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission?

To improve the accessibility of healthcare services and easy sharing of information, the Indian government launched the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission. While numerous other objectives are behind this plan, the top objectives are listed below.

• Establish reliable registries at appropriate levels that make it easier for people to find clinical establishments, health workers, healthcare professionals, pharmacies, and drug providers.
• Ensure national portability in the provision of nationwide health services.
• Enforce the adoption of open standards by digital health stakeholders at national levels.
• Promote better management of healthcare records.
• Create an unshakable system of personal health records for easy access to doctors and other healthcare providers with patient’s informed consent.
• Strengthen the existing healthcare system by ensuring their conformity with defined integration and standards.
• Promote enterprise-level health application system development with a particular focus on achieving sustainable development goals based on health.
• Promote the widespread use of the Clinical Decision Support (CDS) system by nationwide healthcare professionals.
• Support the right steps being taken to ensure quality healthcare services.
• Provide the required data to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of government at all levels.

The Indian government wants to offer a holistic healthcare programme to make the healthcare ecosystem ‘citizen-centric,’ and the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission is an effective step to achieve it.

Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission Features:

The Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission aims to improve the efficiency, transparency, and effectiveness of health services provided by the Indian healthcare ecosystem. Some of its top features are listed below for your quick reference.

• ABDM gives every registered individual a unique health ID that would digitally store and list the medical history of the particular individual. It will make it incredibly easier for people to share their medical records with doctors, clinics, and other healthcare providers for better treatment.
• Registration under the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission is 100% free and voluntary. It means citizens are not mandatorily required to get a unique health ID, but it is highly encouraged because of its numerous benefits.
• The health ID updates the medical records in real time, ensuring you share your latest medical details with healthcare providers to eliminate any risk.
• The stored medical details are only shared with healthcare providers after taking your informed consent.
• People registered under Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission get access to the Healthcare Professionals Registry and Healthcare Facilities Registry to find reliable healthcare providers dealing in modern and traditional health practices.
• People will always have the option to activate and deactivate their unique health ID based on their discretion.
• Creating a unique health ID is simple and fast. All you need is your Aadhar number to verify your account. You can also use your driving license to verify your account registration process.

The benefits and features of Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission are impressive, leading to millions of registrations under the plan. You can register and get an ABHA number to manage and store your medical records seamlessly. You will undoubtedly benefit from this lucrative scheme.

How to Download Ayushman Bharat Health ID Card?

Downloading the Ayushman Bharat Health ID card is easy and can be done online after you have successfully registered your unique health ID. Once your registration process has been verified using the OTP sent to your mobile number, you can proceed with downloading the health ID card. You can follow the two simple steps shared below to download your Ayushman Bharat health ID.

• Step 1: Visit the official National Digital Health Mission website and log in to your account using the credentials you received during registration completion. You can also download the ABHA app and log in to your account for convenience.
• Step 2: Once you log in and see the dashboard, locate your ABHA card and click on the download option. The health ID card will be instantly downloaded to your device, and you can save it digitally or take a printout, depending on your preference. You can download it on your desktop, mobile, or tablet without any difficulty. When you have the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission login credentials ready, downloading the health card will take a few minutes.

Participating in ABDM Will Make It Easier to Access Quality Healthcare Services

There are plenty of reasons to register under the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission, but the ease of sharing updated medical history tops the list. This plan is a boon for people who find it challenging to manually store and maintain their healthcare records in an offline setting. When you obtain an ABHA card, you can seamlessly share your health records with a healthcare provider instantly, securely, and without any trouble. It also saves you from the annoying hassle of carrying multiple healthcare documents to a clinic.

The best part about Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission is that your stored medical details remain secured and get shared only after obtaining your consent. It makes the entire process secure and reliable. If you are ready to bridge the gap between quality healthcare services and you, enroll under the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission today. Follow the registration steps discussed above, and you will have your ABHA card within minutes.