Mumbai, often referred to as the “City of Dreams,” is a prime example of a megalopolis in the 21st century and one of the largest cities in the developing world. Mumbai is home to over 20 million people, making it the most populous city in India and the seventh most populous city in the world. The city is a melting pot of cultures, languages, and religions. People from all over India and various parts of the world live in Mumbai, contributing to its vibrant and diverse culture. The city houses numerous research centres and think tanks, contributing to advancements in various fields, including science, technology, and social sciences

Healthcare infrastructure needs a revamp

Mumbai is one of India’s largest and most densely populated cities. It presents a complex healthcare scenario with significant achievements and ongoing challenges. The city hosts several major public hospitals, including the renowned King Edward Memorial (KEM) Hospital, Tata Memorial Hospital for cancer treatment, and Lokmanya Tilak Municipal General Hospital (Sion Hospital). These hospitals provide affordable care but often incur several challenges.

As one of the largest municipal corporations in the country, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) plays a vital role in managing and promoting the health and well-being of Mumbai’s residents through its accessible healthcare facilities. The BMC’s Public Health Department, which implements preventive measures and addresses public health challenges in the city, has ~250 health facilities.

There are several challenges associated with healthcare infrastructure in Mumbai:

Data quality and availability: There is limited availability of high-quality, labelled healthcare data. Patient data is also often fragmented across different systems and formats, making integration difficult.

Infrastructure limitations: Inadequate digital infrastructure, particularly in rural areas, affects the deployment of new-age health solutions. The poor internet connectivity in remote regions hampers the use of telehealth services.

Skill gap and training: Shortage of skilled professionals with expertise in digital healthcare. Need for continuous education and training programmes for healthcare providers to effectively use digital tools.

Regulatory and Ethical Issues: Patient data privacy is at risk, and biases in training data can lead to unfair diagnoses. Also, unequal access to this technology could widen healthcare disparities.

Interoperability: Lack of standardised protocols and formats for data exchange between different healthcare systems

Cultural and socioeconomic factors: The vast and diverse population presents varied healthcare needs, challenging standardised AI solutions. Socioeconomic disparities lead to unequal access to healthcare technologies, particularly in rural and underserved communities.

To overcome challenges in implementing healthcare in India, a comprehensive and collaborative approach is needed. This is important to improve data quality and availability, strengthen infrastructure, address skill gaps, develop a regulatory framework, ensure financial sustainability, raise awareness and encourage adoption, ensure interoperability, build trust and reliability, and address cultural and socioeconomic barriers.

To do these tasks efficiently and effortlessly, BMC requires a Hospital management system, enabling hospitals to manage information and data related to all aspects of healthcare – processes, providers, patients, and more, which in turn ensures that processes are completed swiftly and effectively.

STL as a trusted partner for building an effective Hospital Management system

STL has always been proud to serve the nation by building the foundational layers for Digital India. 

STL, along with a consortium with Railtel, has recently been awarded a contract to implement a hospital management information system (HMIS) for ~250 health facilities under the Public Health Department of Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), Mumbai. As part of this gross contract, STL will design, install, and maintain BMC’s HMIS for five years. 

Through this initiative, STL will help digitise and interconnect the healthcare system across ~250 health facilities, benefitting millions of citizens in Mumbai. This real-time health management system will unlock a wealth of information and insights to improve patient healthcare outcomes and make data available for policy formulation by government authorities. 

STL will design, build, commission, and maintain the HMIS Software Application in this multi-year agreement. It will also provision Reliable Cloud Hosting services from a MeitY empanelled Cloud Service provider, including a Data Centre (DC) and Disaster Recovery (DR) facility, and deploy SD-WAN Technology and Internet Connectivity across BMC’s healthcare facilities.

The HMIS portal will collect and analyse data and provide periodic reports on the performance of health services and the available human resources and infrastructure services facilities. Through STL’s integrated HMIS, BMS will be able to monitor the quality of health services through:

• Streamlined patient data management
• Enhanced clinical workflow
• Effective resource utilisation
• Integrated healthcare services
• Data-driven public health planning

Through this partnership with BMC, we are looking forward to transforming healthcare services for our fellow citizens. We aim to develop a fully functional Health management information system which is community-owned, decentralised and offers rigorous monitoring & evaluation for improving the health delivery system