Parliamentary panel recommends shared resource networks, AI-based screening programmes
Delhi: In its 172nd report, a Department-related Parliamentary Committee on Health and Family Welfare has recommended establishing regional shared-resource networks to enable government and accredited private hospitals to schedule access to high-cost equipment such as PET-CT, MRI, and molecular diagnostics. The committee also suggested adopting an open-source digital healthcare platform to strengthen vital digital infrastructure.
The Committee noted that fragmented health records and duplication of diagnostic investigations reduce systemic efficiency and increase costs. It noted that advanced diagnostic and therapeutic equipment is highly expensive and often underutilized, yet inaccessible in many districts. Substantial private sector healthcare infrastructure remains underutilized for achieving national public health objectives.
The Committee further noted that numerous procedures requiring hospital admission could be safely executed as day-care surgeries. Hence, the Committee recommended establishing interoperable electronic health records, telemedicine services, and AI-supported clinical decision systems.
The Committee also called for scaling up validated AI-assisted screening programmes to facilitate early diagnosis of common diseases.
“The Committee is of the view that a structured framework must be established to require or incentivize accredited private hospitals to contribute to national health programmes, including disease surveillance and immunisation. The Committee recommends expanding day-care surgery services through the deployment of standardized clinical protocols and appropriate reimbursement mechanisms,” the report stated.
Moreover, considering that the current commercial market for Electronic Medical Records (EMR) and Hospital Information Systems (HIS) restricts access to vital digital infrastructure due to prohibitively expensive licensing walls, the committee recommended that the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, alongside MeitY, should commission a dedicated fund to subsidize top-tier software enterprises in building an enterprise-grade, open-source digital healthcare platform.
The Committee believed that this platform must natively bridge the gap between all stakeholders and incorporate direct IoT integration with bedside equipment.
The Committee also suggested that after finalization, the software must be released globally under an open-source license, entirely free of cost, to democratize access to modern digital workflows.
“The Committee, therefore, strongly recommends an open-source, extremely affordable AI solution to interpret X-rays, especially portable X-rays, so that interpretation can be done at the Community Health Centres (CHCs) or Primary Health Care Centres (PHCCs) level. The Committee strongly recommends, therefore, rationalizing/capping the cost of AI used to interpret such X-rays at CHCs and PHCCs,” the report stated.
