Bringing Health Care Closer to People – A Review of Various Telemedicine Models under the National Health Mission in India

Telemedicine is an alliance between technology and medicine. It is a prevalent practice in developed countries; it has been widely used in developing countries to address the issues of access to medical care. India has been experimenting with telemedicine since long to address the issues of access and availability of specialist care and in recent years, with the rapid advancement of information technology, telemedicine has become a popular concept across the country. In this article, we have reviewed the various aspects of different government-funded telemedicine models functional in 12 states across India. We have also attempted to explore the levels of care delivery and services at facilities provided through telemedicine and challenges being faced in the implementation of the models. As a way forward, the health-care community needs to realize the full potential of telemedicine facility and utilize it to their benefit. Telemedicine will work best when it is one component of a well-functioning health system and not as an isolated gap-filling application.