With a view to utilising the advances in the information technology in healthcare delivery, the Centre is planning to give a major push to e-health with a number of fresh programmes during the current five year plan period.

Health has been declared as a Mission Mode Project under the National e-Governance Plan (NeGP) and already a number of measures were taken. Proposals are under consideration for more such initiatives, sources in the Health Ministry said.

Some of the initiatives included National HMIS Web Portal for district and facility level data reporting under National Rural Health Mission (NRHM), Integrated Disease Surveillance Project for morbidity and disease data reporting, and National Anti Malaria Management Information System for malaria programme data reporting by National Vector Born Disease Control Programme.

Another programme is called Epicentre which is used for TB programme data reporting by Revised National Tuberculosis Control Programme. Strategic Information Management System is used for HIV/AIDS data reporting by National AIDS Control Organisation. There is also Mother Child Tracking System (MCTS), recently introduced to use under NRHM for name based tracking of mother and children.

The web based case based reporting and recording mechanism, named as ‘NIKSHAY’, has been initiated under the Revised National Tuberculosis Control Programme (RNTCP) since May, 2012 while Tally ERP 9 is used under financial management group of NRHM and National Cancer Registry Program is collecting cancer data across designated centres. The Government also started using Procurement Management Information System (ProMIS) for reporting of procurements under NRHM.

There are proposals for new measures like National Onconet Project, which is a telemedicine network in process of establishment connecting regional cancer centres with all other hospitals, follow-up and treatment centres. Tele-ophthalmology project is planned as a telemedicine project for connecting vision centres with ophthalmic experts.

Those initiatives being planned also include National Telemedicine Grid and National Medical College Network, sources said.