Karnataka to have a state health registry, pilot project from Chikkaballapura

'A first of its kind initiative 'State Health Register' will be a robust and standardized health repository of all citizens,' Karnataka’s Medical Education Minister K.Sudhakar said in a statement.

The Karnataka government on Wednesday said that it will soon have a health register of all its residents to help with monitoring of vulnerable people as the state prepares for further relaxation of lockdown measures.

“A first of its kind initiative “State Health Register" will be a robust and standardized health repository of all citizens," Karnataka’s Medical Education Minister K.Sudhakar said in a statement.

This project will be first implemented in Chikkaballapur district on an experimental basis, Sudhakar said.

The decision to get a health registry comes at a time when the B.S.Yediyurappa-led state government is deliberating further lifting of the covid-19 induced lockdown and allowing more businesses to operate and help revive the state economy.

The health registry is part of the state’s efforts to keep close vigil on the spread of the virus. The state government has almost completed a door-to-door survey of all households in the state to identify people most vulnerable to covid-19.

The survey finds that nearly one in two households in Karnataka has people who

need constant health monitoring that poses a new challenge to the state government trying to keep coronavirus infections under control while reopening the state.

Out of an estimated 11.68 million households in Karnataka, 67.16%, or 11.33

million households were surveyed since the beginning of May. According to the findings of the survey, more than 5.73 million homes had senior citizens, persons with comorbid conditions, flu-like symptoms or respiratory issues, and pregnant and lactating women. Sudhakar said that visiting each household will “not only help the government to provide better healthcare, but will also help efficient resource allocation, management and better implementation of various citizen centric schemes in the state."

The project will include a 50% partnership of private hospitals and data collected will help the government to prioritise health care based on geography, demography and other targeted measures, Sudhakar said.

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