BWI: Cisco Deepens Focus on Promoting Healthcare Solutions in India

Press release from Business Wire India
Source: Cisco
Friday, March 04, 2011 05:30 PM IST (12:00 PM GMT)
Editors: General: Consumer interest; Business: Advertising, PR & marketing, Business services, Healthcare, biotechnology & pharmaceutical, Information technology; Technology; Healthcare
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Cisco Deepens Focus on Promoting Healthcare Solutions in India
To promote Care-at-a-Distance healthcare Solutions across the Country

New Delhi, Delhi, India, Friday, March 04, 2011 -- (Business Wire India) -- Cisco today announced that it will continue to deepen and widen its focus on driving healthcare initiatives in India, especially in the area of remote and virtual healthcare. The announcement was made today at 'Innovations in Connected Health in India', Cisco's first industry event for healthcare in India, held at New Delhi.

At the event, Cisco showcased demos of its Care-at-a-Distance solutions including Cisco HealthPresenceTM and also hosted panel discussions on topics such as 'Collaborating for Better Health' and 'Ecosystem for Driving Innovations in Connected Health in India'. Apart from key Cisco executives, eminent speakers from the government, academia, industry and technology companies also participated in this event.

Cisco's Care-at-a-Distance solution enables remote examination and consultation. Cisco's Connected Health solutions help improve patient education, wellness management, post-discharge follow up, and doctor-to-specialist collaboration.

Cisco has been working closely with both the central and state governments and various private bodies to implement remote healthcare initiatives in rural India. Cisco's technology along with its ecosystem network gives an impetus to India's efforts for providing quality and affordable healthcare wherever required, be it at a mall or airport in a city, inside an enterprise, a remote village in the farthest corner of the country or on a naval ship.

In May 2010, Apollo Hospitals and Cisco announced an alliance to help transform healthcare through information and communications technology (ICT). The joint initiative hopes to drive inclusive growth and well-being by accelerating access to affordable and high-quality healthcare via the Cisco HealthPresenceT solution. In early 2010, Cisco signed an MoU with the Central government to provide education and healthcare solutions and promote social inclusion through the government's Common Service Centers (CSCs) all across India. Presently, Cisco through its Cisco HealthPresence technology is enabling the delivery of remote specialist healthcare services in various flood affected areas of Raichur district in Karnataka.

Supporting Quotes

Speaking at the event, Vishal Gupta, VP/GM for Cisco Services & Healthcare Business Unit - Cisco, said, "We are seeing many key transitions in the healthcare sector such as 'healthcare' to 'wellness', location of care shifting from 'hospital' to 'anywhere', and 'prescription' to 'participation'. At Cisco, we believe that access to affordable and high quality healthcare can be implemented for both rural and urban population using innovative solutions that leverage network as the platform. Transforming the delivery of healthcare will require both Innovative technology and extensive collaboration amongst many companies in private and public sector which is why we are holding this event to spur the collaboration between all the stakeholders in healthcare."

Susheela Venkataraman, Managing Director, Internet Business Solutions Group (IBSG), Cisco, added, "Even as we speak, ICT is changing the way we know healthcare. Evidence and collective knowledge are empowering the individual to take charge of their own health and well-being. Information and experience are disseminated far and wide through the use of social media. Visits to the doctor will no longer be limited to physical face-to-face meetings - clinical services will be available 24 x 7, virtually, from anywhere. Increasingly, clinical outcomes will be a result of active collaboration between the patient and the doctor.

Prof . K. Ganapathy, President Apollo Telemedicine networking Foundation & President Telemedicine Society of India said, "The healthcare market in India presents a huge opportunity for both healthcare service providers and technology vendors. While there is an increasing demand for healthcare services, it is not being accompanied by a corresponding increase in the number of highly specialized and trained doctors and specialists. This gap is more pronounced in the developing and emerging countries, where virtual healthcare services are becoming critical to meet the requirements in health care."

Dr. Y Venkatesh, District Health & Family Welfare Officer, Raichur District, Karnataka, said, "Cisco HealthPresence solution provided under Project Samudaya in our district has created revolutionary changes in the rural health system and is a boon to backward districts like ours. High-tech diagnostic and treatment facilities can now be availed by the rural people at their doorstep. They can now benefit from the services of both medical and paramedical staff in their village. Hats off to Cisco for providing this health solution to our people and extending the facilities to all primary health centers in our district and other backward districts as well."

Ravi Rangan, Vice Chairman, Comat Technologies Pvt Ltd, said, "There is a vacuum in respect of services in rural India. Government is the dominant service provider and the lack of choice impacts quality. ICT can bridge distances, offer choices and create sustainable models for healthcare and a broad range of related services."

Prof Gopal Naik, Centre for Public Policy, IIM Bangalore, said "Women in rural areas are a neglected section especially in respect of health due to social and economic reasons. In such an environment remote consultations using IT may actually be the preferred way for women to access healthcare, as it provides confidentiality and convenience."

About Cisco Systems

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Cisco, the Cisco logo and Cisco Systems are registered trademarks or trademarks of Cisco Systems, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the United States and certain other countries. All other trademarks mentioned in this document are the property of their respective owners. The use of the word partner does not imply a partnership relationship between Cisco and any other company. This document is Cisco Public Information.


CONTACT DETAILS
Varghese Thomas, Cisco - India & SAARC, +91 (80) 41593226, vmthomas@cisco.com
Rajashree Joshi, Text 100, +91 9663330702, rajashree.joshi@text100.co.in
Neethu Mathews, Text 100, +91 9986863714, neethu.mathews@text100.co.in

KEYWORDS
CONSUMER, MARKETING, BUSINESS SERVICES, HEALTHCARE, IT, TECHNOLOGY, HEALTHCARE

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