At least 2 lakh Jharkhandis, mostly those suffering from Covid-19 and in home isolation, have consulted doctors via audio and video calls through the 104 helpline number launched by the State government for providing free online medical assistance related to Covid-19 since the pandemic made it difficult for patients to meet doctors in person for health check-ups, data compiled by the Health Department highlighted on Tuesday.
Besides patients, commoners who are not infected by coronavirus also made calls on the helpline number and sought details about bed availability, vaccination slots and registered grievances related to lack of facilities at government hospitals in the state, an executive working for the helpline said.
As per data with the National Health Mission (NHM), as many as 1,87,525 Jharkhand residents consulted doctors over audio calls while 23,995 residents spoke to doctors via video calls for health issues related to Covid-19.
“Most of these callers were suffering from Covid-19 and were in home isolation,” said Dr Bhuvnesh Pratap Singh, the nodal officer of the 104 helpline service in Jharkhand.
The 104 helpline is a 24x7 facility for online queries and consultations related to health issues, primarily Covid-19 in the current situation. The helpline number was launched back in 2014 by the State Government.
However, it was strengthened after Covid-19 hit Jharkhand in March 2020, officials said.
“We also provided online counselling to over 9500 people dealing with mental health issues due to the pandemic and lockdown,” said an official working with the helpline facility. He, however, refused to be named citing protocols of the helpline. “Many of these callers were either suffering from Covid-19 or had patients at home or in the neighbourhood,” he added.
As per the Government data, around 3.31 lakh people have been infected by coronavirus in the State so far and the helpline has received Covid related calls from more than 2 lakh residents, indicating that the helpline was getting a good response.
The 104 helpline was prompt in responding to callers and addressing their problems. An executive received a phone call made by this newspaper on Tuesday and sought details such as age, district and locality of the caller. The correspondent received a call from a representative of the helpline within the next five minutes with answers to his queries.
The Government was not only providing online consultation to patients in home isolation, but also supplying home isolation kits to them. As per government data, the state has provided 84,921 home isolation kits to Covid patients in Jharkhand since the entry of the virus in the State.