Describes Indian Council of Medical Research, ICMR Institutes, importance of IT in health care, Health Information System and Mobile based Surveillance Quest using IT. For more information visit: http://www.transformhealth-it.org/

1. Role of Information and
Communication Technology in Medical
Research: A National Perspective
Dr Rajni Kant
Indian Council of Medical Research
Department of Health Research
(Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Govt of India)
New Delhi

2. Indian Council of Medical Research
Apex body to formulate, conduct,
coordinate and promote biomedical
research
Founded in 1911 as Indian Research
Fund Association
Renamed as ICMR in 1949
Intramural Research: through
network of 32 Institutes/ centres and
over 100 field units
Extramural Research through funding
to medical colleges, universities /
institutions - average 1200-1500
projects annually (ongoing and new)
HRD : About 1000-1200 student
fellowships- JRF, SRF, PDF, STS
(ongoing and new, every year)
International Co-operation in Health
Research

3. Network of ICMR Institutes/Centres
1. BMHRC, Bhopal
2. CRME, Madurai
3. EVRC, Mumbai
4. DMRC, Jodhpur
5. FTDRC, Hyderabad
6. GRC, Mumbai
7. ICPO, Noida
8. ICMR Virus Unit,
Kolkata
9. MCC, Pune
10.NARI, Pune
11.NCDIR, Bangalore
12.NCLAS, Hyderabad
13.NICED, Kolkata
14.NIE, Chennai
15.NIMR, New Delhi
16.NIMS, New Delhi
17. NIN, Hyderabad
18. NIRT, Chennai
19.NIREH, Bhopal
20.NIV, Pune
21.NJIL&OMD, Agra
22.NIOH, Ahmedabad
23 NIIH, Mumbai
24. NIOP, New Delhi
25. NIRRH, Mumbai
26.RMRC,
Bhubaneswar
27.RMRC, Port-Blair
28.RMRCT, Jabalpur
29.RMRIMS, Patna
30. RMRC, Dibrugarh
31. RMRC, Belgaum
32. VCRC, Puducherry
Malaria, Leishmaniasis, Filariasis, Diarrhoeal diseases, Leprosy, Tuberculosis,
HIV/AIDS, Poliomyelitis, other viral diseases, Cancer, Occupational Health
Blood Disorders, Reproductive Health, Nutrition, Epidemiology, Medical Statistics,
Regional Health Issues

5. Health Information System
Health information systems
strongly influence quality
and efficiency of health care,
and technical progress
offers advanced
opportunities to support
health care.

6. Benefits
 Information technology is critical to health
care’s infrastructure and key to transforming
how health care operates
 IT can improve…
◦ Quality of patient care
◦ Business of health care
◦ Compliance with regulations and policies
◦ Mobilizing the field to address the fragmentation
and lack of coordination in health
care…improving quality and performance
through standards-based information systems
◦ Connectivity & network/communications

7. Informatics in Medical Research
 Informatics has become an integral component of
medical research due to exponential increase in
volume and complexity of data.
 Informatics tools and techniques are being used
world-wide for:
◦ Better understanding of disease prevalence and
pathogenesis
◦ Developing better prognostic/diagnostic markers and
therapeutics
 Three important reasons for limited use of informatics
by Indian medical professionals are:
◦ Lack of awareness
◦ Lack of sufficient infrastructure particular for big medical
data
◦ Lack of expertise

8.  Biomedical Informatics Centres of ICMR were
initiated in project mode in 2006 Under TF .
 Established 9 Biomedical Informatics Centres of
ICMR at medical colleges and medical research
institutes.
 During the duration of the project (six years) the
Centres conducted 57 training programs, completed
122 collaborative projects, developed 47 databases
of clinical and biomedical information and published
98 peer-reviewed publications.
 ICMR extended the program into the second phase
and enhanced the mandate to a total of 20
Biomedical Informatics Centres.

9. Mobile-based Surveillance Quest using
IT (MoSQuIT) Disease Surveillance
System for Malaria using a Mobile
Platform
Innovation:
Disease Surveillance System
for Malaria using a Mobile
Platform
Implementer:
Centre for Development of
Advanced Computing

10. Indian Council for Medical Research/RMRC
Mobile based Surveillance Quest using IT
MoSQuIT
Collaborators:
Centre for Development of Advanced Computing, Pune

11. • Track, monitor the status of
malaria in the community
• Detect changes in trend,
distribution of malaria in
order to initiate investigative,
control measures
• Measure the effectiveness of
anti-malaria programme
• Malaria Prevention & control
Objectives

12. Design & Methodology
•Identification of OPD/Healthcare centres & Health workers
for data collection
•Training the Health workers for data collection/transfer
•Involvement of Medical officers, ANM, MPW, ASHA,
Technical supervisor, Surveillance workers for tracking and
monitoring
•Instantaneous data transfer to the data mart at the
PHC/Regional Medical Centre
•Data analysis for trend identification and outbreak prediction ;
Building Blocks:
•Data collection via Mobiles ;
•Data transfer from Mobiles to Servers ;
•Data collation/analysis on Server ;
•Multimedia User Interface
• Video clips (Training of using malaria detection kit..) ;
• Voice/Audio clips (Precaution during epidemic..) ;
• Health games (Malaria prevention..) ;
• Alerts of epidemic

13. •System deployed in Primary Health Centres (Tengaghat, Assam) with 10
subcentres covering Population of size 60,000 from 66 Villages
•Fifty Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHA) involved in door-to-door visits
•Besides these, Lab Technicians, Medical Officers and other Support Staff
including Nurses are involved
Deployment
Up-scaling
Based on the success of this work, further scaled-up
deployment of MoSQuIT has been approved along
International borders of North East India (Mobile based
integrated surveillance system for malaria along international
borders of NE .

14. Prevents delay in data dissemination from field to decision-
makers
Early diagnosis reduces morbidity and mortality
Early detection of epidemic situation
Fast reporting, close to real time
Improves accuracy of decision making
Facilitates better treatment and care of patients
VsMobile based Conventional
Benefits

15. Tuberculosis Screening, Diagnostic
& Treatment Adherence system
using ICT & mobile Technology
15
Developed
by RMRC,
Dibrugarh

16. Objectives
• Design, Development and Deployment of Screening, Diagnostic &
Tuberculosis(TB) Treatment Adherence System for inaccessible
hilly area & tea gardens which will provide region specific risk
factors on Web and Mobile platforms
• Connect stakeholders of Revised National Tuberculosis Control
Programme (RNTCP) by providing near-real time information to
TB Home Visitor(TBHV), Senior Treatment Supervisor (STS) &
Directly Observed Treatment (DOT) provider/Accredited Social
Health Activist (ASHA) to identify TB treatment defaulters
• Build Pill box compatibility to help with Treatment Adherence
• Cost effective and Non-invasive TB Screening, Diagnostic &
Monitoring using Information and Communications
Technology(ICT) for better X-Ray reading & Cough sound pattern
analysis
• Generating awareness amongst community regarding hygiene
habits especially about spitting & coughing etiquette for the
prevention of spread of TB

17. Mobile Edutainment for TB
Preventive TB Management
Know about TB
My Family Care
…
Curative TB Management
Prepare for Investigations:
Sputum, X-ray…
Drug regime, Dos & Don’ts for TB
Diet & Lifestyle for TB patient
…
Entertainment
TB related mobile games
17

18. Health Apps
Health Informatics Through Mobile
Technology(HIMT)

19. Connecting to People
 CANCER
AWARENESS:
 Development of
Cancer Web Portal for
public by ICPO, Noida
 www.cancerindia.org.i
n

20. Mapping Vector-borne Diseases- Usage
of Space Technology
• Mapping of village level
ecological risk of malaria.
• Impact of deforestation on
malaria vectors in Sonitpur
(Assam).
• Risk map of filariasis in 3 blocks
in Odisha.
• Niche modelling of Kala-azar
vector.
• Early warning tools for malaria.
• Early warning system for
Japanese encephalitis.
• Determined Climate suitability
for cholera using weather
parameters.
With images of IRS P6 MX,
villages categorized into high
( ) and low ( ) malarious
villages in Kallembella (Sira
Taluka , Tumkur)

21. Mapping of Zone wise Dengue Cases,
Aedes Breeding, GPS Track & Way
Points for Aedes control

22. •Buffer zone of 200 m around
the 20 locality of West zone
Delhi was created
•Aedes Aegypti breeding was
controlled in 2012 -14.
•No case of dengue was reported
from the localities and in buffer
zone of 200 m in 2014 & 2015.
Use of GIS technology in dengue
control

23. e-learning programmes in
health research
NPTEL- National Programme on Technology Enhanced
Learning
 Joint initiative of IITs and IISc
 Funded by Ministry of Human Resources
Development
• In 2016, NIE-NPTEL collaboration will
launch the following courses:
• Research methods
• Good Clinical and Laboratory Practices
• Principles of Bio-ethics
• Human Subject Protection and Operating
Guidelines for Human Ethics Commitees

24. Digitization of IJMR
since inception (1913)
Text/Ima
ge
Cleaning
Software
Indexing &
Keyword
Generation
Pdf
conversion/O
CR Metadata
Digital
Record
Upload
To increase visibility & Impact, Full-fill
regular high demand for articles, Facilitate
easy access & retrieval
Physical Information Digital Form
(Project in collaboration with CDAC, Noida)

25. Journal Archive

26. Content Page

27. Exhaustive search options

28. Project Proposal and
Management System

29. Appropriate use of e-
connectivity
 E-governance for administrative work.
 E-governance for project management.
 Knowledge Management Policy for optimum
utilization of National Knowledge Network for health
service delivery, medical education and research (e
Health)
◦ Integrating research with service, medical
education and health care delivery systems.
◦ Sharing knowledge about best practices to
raise the productivity and efficiency of health
systems and improve the outcome related
indicators.
◦ Building up the capacity for management of
health effects of disasters/outbreaks. 29

30. Action Plan for Telemedicine
 To prepare the Policy Document on Knowledge
Management for Health- Service, Education and
Research in the country (KMP).
 To develop an efficient Health Knowledge
Management System for collection, collation,
dissemination and utilization of knowledge for
improving the quality of Health Services, Education
and Research
 Under chairmanship of Prof. S.V. Raghavan, Scientific
Secretary in the Office of the Principal Scientific
Adviser to the Government of India & Professor in the
Department of Computer Science and Engineering
along with other area experts, ten projects were
reviewed and five were found to be suitable to be
undertaken as per KMP policy initiative

31. Projects related to Telemedicine
 School Based Surveillance of Acute Pharyngitis and Rheumatic Fever,
RHD among School Children using Mobile Phone based reporting
system; prospective randomized cluster intervention trial.
 Evaluate the Role of Telemedicine in Diagnosis of Retinal Diseases in
Tribal Population of Keylong, Lahaul & Spiti of Himachal Pradesh
Using Fundus Photography.
 Impact of 24-Hour ACS Helpline on the Thrombolytic Rate in Acute
Coronary Syndrome in Kangra District: A Cluster Controlled Trial
 Effect of Standard E-Management Guidelines to Improve Treatment
Compliance Among Patients With Type-2 Diabetes Mellitus of Urban,
Rural And Tribal Area of HP
 Geriatric Friendly Clinic: Primary Health Care - An Age-Friendly
Approach
 Strategic program to develop and evaluate the effect of an educational
program for rationalizing the use of antibiotics in peripheral centers
connected to telemedicine unit of a tertiary care hospital.

32. Software development
 Short term studentship (STS)
 Management of Acute Coronary
Events (MACE)
 e-Recruitment
 Monitoring the Engineering Services

33.  Up-to-date databases of
◦ Extramural projects funded by ICMR
◦ Profiles of ICMR Institutes and Scientists
◦ Publications of the ICMR Scientists
◦ Seminars/Symposium/Workshops/Conferences funded
by ICMR
◦ Indian Journal of Medical Research (IJMR)
 Report generation
◦ Generation of customized reports for time bound queries,
parliament queries
 Interactive Extramural Information System for the Division
of ECD.

34. Office procedure automation
(OPA)
 Implemented in the year 2000 at ICMR
Headquarters
 Four ICMR institutes (NIOH, NIRT, NIV,
RMRIMS) are using it
 Help in tracking the Office files and its
place

35.  ICMR has established and managing
Video Conferencing facility at its nine
institutes, which help in interaction and
deliberations on various health issues
in short time with out involving any
travel
 The facility is being used extensively
for National and International
Conferences by all institutes having
VC facility

36.  Mega Project on Digitization of IJMR
since
inception (1913): Outcome- IJMR
Digital
Archive with searchable interface
 Database on Research Papers on
Malaria in
the name MALPUB (1955-2005) and
its
Analysis
 Directory of Indian S&T (including
Medical
Periodicals) with the name DIP (2010)

37. Tuberculosis (Developed by NIRTH, Chennai)
 TBDRUGS -Database of Drugs for Tuberculosis
 DDRTB- Database for Drug Resistant
Tuberculosis
Nutrition (Developed by NIN, Hyderabad)
 Food and Nutrition Database
 Diet Calculator with recipes and Recommended
dietary Guidelines
 National Food Borne Disease Surveillance Portal

38.  E-Governance with the purpose of automating
all activities and building an Information Base
 ICMR Computational Genomics Centre
 Data Repository consisting of all research data
generated by ICMR through its extramural &
intramural activities. Application of Data mining
and Business Intelligence.
 Develop E-class rooms using National
Knowledge Network for teaching of Medical
Students by the faculty of tertiary care
Hospitals.

39. Conclusion
 Use of Information and Communication Technologies in Health
Care including Health Research have immense potential.
 This will help in easy connectivity, people mobilization,
developing rapid response system and help in mapping and
forecasting of diseases in advance as well as developing
important databases.
 E-health/m-health is need of the hour
 Challenge is to widen the scope and be prepared to cope up
with fast changing scenario as well as adoptable to new
innovations/ technologies
 Strengthening infrastructure and capacity building will further
enhance its utilization
 May also contribute to Digital India Campaign of the New Govt.