NHA launches 100 microsites project to accelerate digital health adoption across country

The National Health Authority (NHA) has introduced the 100 Microsites project as part of the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM) with the objective of promoting digital health adoption and enhancing healthcare accessibility for all.According to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, these microsites will serve as clusters for small and medium-scale clinics, nursing homes, hospitals, labs, pharmacies, and other healthcare facilities that are ABDM-enabled and offer digital health services to patients.The microsites will be established across the country in various states/union territories, primarily implemented by State Mission Directors of Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission, while the National Health Authority will provide financial resources and overall guidance, the ministry said.The main goal of these microsites is to create a small ecosystem in specific geographic areas where complete ABDM adoption is present, and the entire patient journey is digitized.The State and Union Territory may collaborate with development partners and interfacing agencies to set up and manage the microsites. All healthcare facilities and professionals, especially from the private sector, will be registered in ABDM modules like Healthcare Professionals Registry (HPR) and Health Facility Registry (HFR), followed by the installation of ABDM-enabled applications within the microsite.Patients visiting these centres will also become part of ABDM, with their health records linked to their ABHA.Talking about the project, the CEO of NHA said “We aim to establish 100 such microsites across the country where focused efforts would be made to bring as many small-medium scale healthcare entities under the ABDM fold. This will not only increase adoption among private sector providers but will also help ABDM to expand its footprints among the private healthcare providers across the country as well.”The project intends to raise awareness about ABDM and its benefits among small and medium-scale healthcare providers, encourage them to register on ABDM's core registries, use ABDM-certified digital solutions and ultimately link digital health records. Such targeted adoption efforts are expected to activate the ecosystem for widespread ABDM adoption in the country.