Awareness about care

 What is care?

CARE is a comprehensive capacity and patient management tool, built specifically for disaster management purposes. 

Care is open-source software with an MIT license

Open source system:

The entire codebase of this application is available to the public. The software that formes CARE is developed on an online portal called GitHub that hosts open-source software so that engineers from all across the world may view the codebase of the software and contribute towards the development of the same.

MIT License:

This is a license that explicitly allows anyone to use the code-base of the software in whatever way they deem fit. Any person could copy the code, modify it, reproduce it or do any such action without any consent from the developers of the codebase.

Why is it required?

Capacity Management:

The Corona Pandemic has brought to limelight the shortfalls and limitations within our healthcare systems. One of the major shortfalls in our healthcare systems is that the state administrators or decision-makers are blind. Critical information about bed availability, oxygen availability or stock of drugs, etc. is not available in a user-friendly manner anywhere. There is no central or nodal agency that collects real-time data on usage and demand for healthcare assets and services.

CARE system is a platform that makes available real-time data of all subsets within the healthcare system of any identified location. This makes the management of assets within a hospital easier at the same time empowering the administrators and decision-makers to make better-informed decisions.

Patient management:

Our public healthcare system runs on pen and paper. This leads to a multitude of issues like

*Data lose

*Wastage of time

*Reporting becomes tedious

*Analysis of large data becomes impossible

*Communication of information is not efficient

*Large manpower required for data collection and processing 

With the digital patient management tool, the treatment given to patients are improved because:

*Patient Data is securely stored

*Patient gets continued care across different facilities because of seamless data sharing

*Close and effective supervision from the administration

*Patient also gets better access to their own medical records

*Fetching data is quicker, easier and more accurate.

CARE was initially deployed in Ernakulam district of Kerala where the officials of the National Health Mission and the Department of Health Services, Kerala depend on it for managing the large number of COVID patients that they have. The tool was later deployed across 5 states and is in the process of deployment in 8 more states. 

As of 03rd February, 2022, the system has managed over 3.5 Lac patients and shifted over 1.2 Lac patients between different health facilities within the district.

There are various levels of Users within care:

* Volunteer: A volunteer that is linked to a facility has access to view all information saved within the facility but cannot edit it.

*Pharmacist: A Pharmacist that is linked to a facility has access to view all patient and facility information saved within the facility but cannot edit it.

*Staff: This is the staff (data entry/ administrator) within a facility. The staff has access to all the patient details within the facility and may amend or add more information. 

*Staff (Read-Only): This is the staff (data entry/ administrator) within a facility. The staff has access to all the patient details within the facility but cannot amend or add more information.

*Doctor: The doctor, if linked to a facility has full access to all patient information within the facility. Only individual patients may also be linked to the doctor for teleconsultation or specialist consultation. In that case, the doctor has access to the records of only that particular patient.

*Localbody Admin: The Localbody admin can see the list of positive cases in a day within their local body (Panchayat, municipality, or corporation). If they are linked to a facility they have full access to all information of the patient within the facility.

*Ward Admin: The ward admin can see the list of positive cases in a day within their ward in the external result module. If they are linked to a facility they have full access to all information of the patient within the facility. They may also add/edit patient information within the facility.

*District Admin: The district admin has full access to all facilities registered within the district and all patients within those facilities.

*District (Read-Only) Admin: The district admin has full access to view information of all facilities registered within the district and all patients within those facilities. But no edit permission is given.

*District Lab Admin: Can view and edit all lab information and all sample details within the district

*State Admin: The state admin has full access to all facilities registered within the state and all patients within each facility.

*State (Read-Only) Admin: This user can see all facilities and patients registered in the state but cannot edit the information.

*State Lab Admin: Can view and edit all lab information and all sample details within the state

WHAT IS A RESOURCE REQUEST APPROVING/FULFILLING FACILITY?

The hospitals, especially during dire times like a pandemic will need constant supply of resources. When such request for resources are made from multiple hospitals, there needs to be a central administrative body managing such requests and ensuring that the relevant requests are fulfilled. Such a body is called the Resource Request Approving Facility. The same can be set up at ward, panchayat, district state or national level depending on the requirement. Such bodies where set up at the state and district level during the second wave of COVID to manage the supply of Oxygen.

WHAT IS A RESOURCE APPROVING/FULFILLING AUTHORITY?

The resource requests, once approved by the resource approving authority needs to be fulfilled by somebody. This is the resource fulfilling authority. The resource approving authority, once a resource request is seem as relevant, will approve it and forward it to the resource fulfilling facility. It is this team that ensures the resource reaches the required place. In case of pandemic, the resource fulfilling facility for oxygen was the dept. Of industries and various oxygen plants. There may be different resource fulfilling authority for different types of resource requests. While oxygen plans may be fulfilling requests for oxygen, it may be pharmaceutical companies fulfilling requests for life-saving drugs.