Towards creating a highly skilled healthcare workforce. India is producing unicorns and successful online educational companies in large numbers.
As a nation, we remain unprepared not just to face the pandemic like Covid-19 but even the every day health needs of our citizens leave much to be desired. The doctor to patient ratio in the country is woefully low, which is merely 0.7 doctors per 1,000 people. This compared to the World Health Organisation (WHO) average of 2.5 doctors per 1,000 people. Similarly, the nurses to patient ratio are equally poor. The inadequacy of healthcare access is further compounded by the fact that healthcare workers and Indian healthcare infrastructure are predominantly located in large cities and big towns. Both, the Central and state governments have recognised the burning needs to address these challenges and have launched several initiatives in this regard.
Rising up to the challenge
The answer to creating a highly skilled workforce and the numbers needed may be with the new flag bearers, which include technology companies, specialists and content creators, who will converge to create the infrastructure of the future for upskilling of the health workers. This no longer will be limited to just classrooms or conventional academia.
India is producing unicorns and successful online educational companies in large numbers. The traditional views of schools and colleges being the only primary source of learning and enhancing skills has radically changed. Education technology or EdTech has very much arrived now. In fact, it an apt time to extend it into the healthcare domain as well. With online, on-demand and high-speed access, upskilling of healthcare workers can be done successfully. Continuing medical education, learning new skills, all done in real-time, will not just enhance people’s skill but may well change the health outcome in certain cases.
The acceleration of technology adoption of Augmented Reality (AR), Virtual Reality (VR) and Artificial Intelligence (AI), Blockchain and Internet of Things (IoTs) proves that the upskilling of healthcare workers will be possible through innovative and new-age companies.
Ms Ashvini Danigond
Executive Director & CEO
Manorama Infosolutions
