Digital mission in MBBS curriculum amid data privacy concerns

New Delhi: MBBS students may have to take a course on Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM) as growing volumes of storage and sharing of Indians’ health data spark concerns over data privacy.

This comes in the backdrop of the National Health Authority (NHA) telling medical education regulator the National Medical Commission (NMC) to incorporate a course on ABDM in medical education.

Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission is the government’s flagship scheme that aims to create a national digital health ecosystem, fuelled by digital innovations.

The mission will also develop the backend to support the integrated digital health infrastructure.

“National Medical Commission is the medical education regulator, and they are brainstorming on how to take this initiative forward. However, the initiative is at the very initial stage. In fact, the NHA has communicated to the National Medical Commission discussing the issue. The idea is that digital health is going to be an important thing in medical education and doctors should be aware of it. Therefore, the plan is to include curriculum on Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission in medical education which should include privacy, technology etc.,” said an official aware of the matter.

Last year’s cyber attacks on the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Delhi is probably one of the reasons which has triggered this move, experts said.

Queries emailed to the health ministry did not elicit a response.

“Such courses will help to create awareness and accelerate the adoption of the ABDM, and digital health is expected to significantly improve the effectiveness, efficiency and transparency of the health service delivery overall,” stated a letter from the National Health Authority seen by Mint.

As many as 168,621 verified medical professionals and 203,227 health facilities are linked to Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission.

Around 378 million health IDs have been created under the platform.

“Healthcare professional are a crucial stakeholders group in enabling the digitisation of the healthcare ecosystem in India. The unique architecture of ABDM promises to provide the real benefits to individuals when majority healthcare professionals offer their services through ABDM,” read the letter to the medical education regulator.

Introducing medical professionals to the concepts of ABDM and digital health can better prepare them to use digital tools for providing better healthcare to patients,” the letter read.