How IoT and AI is changing the face of rural healthcare
For a population of 128 crores, India has 10.12 lakh doctors. Of these, a recent KPMG report says, 74 per cent cater to only a third of the urban residents. In other words, there are only about 2.63 lakh doctors catering to the majority of Indians residing on the fringes of urban settlements and in rural areas.
On the other hand, India has more than 90 crore mobile phone connections. Studies show that in 2008 the number of devices connected to the Internet was more than the number of people on Earth! By 2020, the prediction is that there’ll be nearly 50 billion (5000 crore) ‘Connected Things’. Thanks to the ever-growing reach of broadband Internet and smartphones, we now have novel opportunities to bridge the healthcare gap.
For Indian healthcare, the game changer will be the combination of Internet of Things (IoT) and Artificial Intelligence (AI). The challenge is to bring in new generation of healthcare solutions at the primary care level, with focus on preventive care. Read more…