Online doctor appointments for veterans across Telangana and Andhra Pradesh
In shortIntellobots built the ECHS Doctor Appointment Booking application for HQ TASA, so ex-servicemen and their families could book polyclinic appointments online and rate the care they received. It launched on Army Day, 15 January 2018, was widely used across Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, and was briefed to Army Headquarters as a model for pan-India adoption.
- polyclinics across two states in the TASA network
- 16
- polyclinics across two states in the TASA networkSource (opens in a new tab)
- beneficiaries the systems are built to scale to
- 52 lakh+
- beneficiaries the systems are built to scale toSource (opens in a new tab)
- beneficiary satisfaction before the programme
- 50–60%
- beneficiary satisfaction before the programmeSource (opens in a new tab)
Figures link to the published report they come from. Targets are labelled as targets.
The challenge
What wasn't working
The Ex-servicemen Contributory Health Scheme (ECHS) looks after veterans and their dependants through a network of polyclinics. Fifteen years after it began, beneficiary satisfaction in the region stood at 50 to 60%. Booking a doctor meant travelling to a polyclinic and waiting in line, often for elderly veterans. Headquarters had no live view of demand, waiting times or how each clinic was doing, and feedback was collected on paper, if at all.
What we built
The solution
A web and mobile application that lets a beneficiary pick a polyclinic and doctor, choose a slot and get a confirmed appointment without leaving home. Every visit can be rated, so feedback flows straight to the people who run the clinics instead of sitting in a register. Polyclinic staff manage their doctors' availability in the same system. It was the first of three phases: medicines and central monitoring followed.
Impact
What changed
- Launched on Army Day, 15 January 2018, and reported as extensively used by ECHS beneficiaries in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh
- Built-in beneficiary feedback on every appointment
- Briefed to the Director General, Information Systems, Army HQ in August 2018 as part of TASA's IT initiatives
- Built to scale to more than 52 lakh ECHS beneficiaries, and reported as likely to be adopted pan-India
Where this fits
Three systems, one programme for HQ TASA.
Three systems Intellobots built for the Indian Army's HQ TASA, told as one journey: a veteran, a clinic, a medicine and a commander.
01 · Book
A veteran books a doctor from home.
The ECHS appointment app, built by Intellobots for HQ TASA, launched on Army Day 2018. Ex-servicemen and their families pick a polyclinic and a slot online instead of travelling to stand in line, then rate the visit afterwards.
02 · Polyclinics
Sixteen polyclinics, one booking system.
Appointments flow to 16 ECHS polyclinics across Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, so each clinic sees its day before it starts, and headquarters sees every clinic.
03 · Medicines
Medicine indents run end to end.
MIMS, reported as the first system of its kind in India, carries each medicine indent through approval, procurement and distribution, with online financial concurrence from the Controller of Defence Accounts (CDA).
04 · TEMIS
Command gets one live picture.
TEMIS, the TASA ECHS Management Information System, pulls appointments and medicines into live dashboards, so commanders act on data instead of paperwork. It was reported as likely to be adopted pan-India, for 52 lakh+ ECHS beneficiaries.
How it unfolded
Jan 2018
Launch
Released to beneficiaries on Army Day, 15 January.
Feb 2018
Stakeholder conference
GOC TASA brought the officers in charge of all 16 polyclinics, the military hospitals and the regional centre together to back the programme and its next phases.
Jun 2018
Phase two
Medicine inventory management (MIMS) went live as phase two.
Aug 2018
Army HQ review
Lt Gen Anil Kapoor, DG Information Systems, was briefed on the suite.
Press
In the papers
Independent coverage of this work. Links open the original articles.
- The Hans India
- UNI (via M3 India)
- Deccan Chronicle
More of our work
Firstsystem of its kind in the country
MIMS: procure-to-pay for ECHS medicines, launched with HQ TASA in 2018
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TEMIS: one live picture of every polyclinic, appointment and medicine
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