Going tech-savvy for health

City-based NGO, Helping Hand Foundation, which offers Voluntary Patient Care services at various Government hospitals has now introduced a first-of-its-kind ‘Patient Care Services’ in Public Health.

The organisation has connected, its ‘Help Desk’ with a WhatsApp portal, in the six government hospitals at Barkas, Shalibanda, Golconda, Nampally, Malakpet and King Koti run under the Telangana Vaidya Vidhana Parishad (TVVP).

Patient Care Services at these hospitals were formally inaugurated by Dr Shiva Prasad, Superintendent of Area Government Hospital at King Kothi on Thursday.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr Prasad said, “Medical emergency is emergency for everyone without discrimination of whether they are poor or not. The Helping Hand Foundation has acutely responded to emergencies, and has voluntarily been trying to extend quality and scope of services at government hospitals such as ours.”

Each desk in the hospital will be managed by relief volunteers who will be well-versed with aspects of patient care; counselling, including basic life support.

“Each day at 9am, 30 volunteers of the foundation run through “Whats App Portal” from 15 government hospitals and the six area hospitals,” said Mujtaba Hasan Askari, Chief Health Officer at Helping Hand Foundation.

“This WhatsApp Portal which operates in three broad groups, handles Emergency Medical Requests and Inter-Facility Transfers respectively while the third group exclusively handles Dengue viral test and reporting,” he said.

Superintendent of Area Government Hospital at Golkonda Dr Ramana Babu, said, “Assistance to government hospitals by real non-governmental organisations like Helping Hand Foundation can help meet the public needs in absolute manner.”