Meghalaya charts digital health roadmap, plans integrated patient coordination centre

State eyes seamless healthcare through interoperable digital platforms, AI-powered tools, and a dedicated Digital Health Mission

Shillong, July 25: Meghalaya has taken a major step towards building a digitally connected healthcare system, with the State Health Systems Resource Centre (SHSRC) convening a high-level stakeholder consultation to chart the state’s digital health roadmap.

The consultation held on July 24 focused on eliminating fragmented healthcare systems by improving interoperability between digital platforms, reducing duplication of data entry, and enabling better use of health data for patient care and policy decisions.

The meeting brought together officials from the Department of Health and Family Welfare, National Health Mission (NHM) Meghalaya, Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM) Meghalaya, Meghalaya Health Insurance Scheme (MHIS), along with representatives of the Gates Foundation, PATH, National Institute for Smart Government (NISG), Sirobilt and Eka Care.

A key proposal discussed was the establishment of the Meghalaya Medical Services Coordination Centre (MMSCC), an integrated digital platform designed to streamline access to healthcare through tele-triage, referrals, appointment scheduling, ambulance coordination and patient navigation services.

Stakeholders also deliberated on creating a State Digital Health Mission, which will serve as the state’s governance framework for digital health, providing strategic oversight, ensuring interoperability across various healthcare platforms, and steering Meghalaya’s long-term digital transformation.

During the consultation, SHSRC Senior Consultant (Digital Health) Nishanlang Khonglah presented an overview of Meghalaya’s ongoing digital health initiatives and outlined the technological foundations for the next phase of reforms.

PATH presented a roadmap for operationalising the proposed MMSCC, while Eka Care demonstrated its AI-powered clinical documentation platform that uses ambient voice-to-text technology to automatically generate medical records, a tool expected to significantly reduce paperwork for doctors and improve the quality of electronic health records.

Addressing the workshop, Additional Chief Secretary Sampath Kumar stressed that Meghalaya’s digital health roadmap must begin with a comprehensive assessment of the state’s existing digital ecosystem.

He said the roadmap should identify gaps across current platforms, define how they can communicate through APIs and interoperability standards, and establish the proposed State Digital Health Mission as the institutional mechanism to coordinate the transformation.

Officials said the initiative aims to build a healthcare system where patient information moves seamlessly across facilities, healthcare workers spend less time on documentation and more time treating patients, and citizens receive faster, more coordinated and responsive healthcare services.

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