Scan and register crosses 25 crore OPD registrations under Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission
ABDM's Scan and Register service has completed over 25 crore OPD registrations since its inception in October 2022. The QR code-based service is currently available in 30,800 healthcare institutions across 36 states and union territories, enabling patients to digitize the hospital registration process for faster and easier access.
The digital healthcare service, launched in October 2022, is now available in more than 30,800 healthcare institutions across all the states and Union territories, helping people register for OPD services with a QR-code scan.
India's digital healthcare service has achieved a significant milestone with over 25 crore outpatient department (OPD) registrations through the Scan and Register service of the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM).
The Union Health Ministry stated that the service, previously known as Scan and Share, has contributed to making hospital registration processes more efficient and accessible for patients since its launch in October 2022.
The service enables people to register for OPD by scanning the QR code provided at healthcare facilities. By using a QR code, patients will be able to opt for registration instead of submitting the registration form. The e-Registration option is available through ABDM_enabled PHR Application (My Health Record) by scanning the QR code, which, upon consent, will share the patient's ABHA record with the hospital.
Digital registration aims to reduce waiting time
The Scan and Register system is a new way to make the most common process during a hospital visit, the registration for OPD consultation, simpler. Patients only need to scan a QR code and give their consent to allow the hospital to use their ABHA records for registration purposes. Thus, reducing paperwork and saves time.
The service has proven to be beneficial for those who go to the hospital often for treatment. According to the Health Ministry, senior citizens, women, and pregnant women are among the primary beneficiaries.
Nearly four lakh patients use the Scan and Register system daily for OPD registration, as per the health ministry.
Service reaches more than 30,800 healthcare facilities
The digital registration service has expanded massively since its inception.
As per the Health Ministry, the Scan and Register service is now available in 30,800 healthcare institutions across all the states and union territories and 756 districts.
Out of these, 24323 are public and 6481 private healthcare institutions.
The ministry said that this expansion is a result of the efforts made by the Centre, states, healthcare institutions, and digital solution providers in taking the digital healthcare services to the masses through the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission.
Bihar records the highest number of registrations
The adoption of scan and register is different across the states and UTs. Bihar has the highest number of registrations of more than 7.30 crore according to the health ministry, followed by Uttar Pradesh with 4.09 crore, Andhra Pradesh with 3.38 crore and Jammu and Kashmir with 1.39 crore.
This is an indication of the increasing use of QR code-based digital registration in healthcare institutions across the country.
AIIMS Delhi tops government facilities
Among the government healthcare institutions, AIIMS Delhi has secured the maximum number of Scan and Register registrations to date, with more than 54.29 lakh registrations.
Followed by AIIMS Bhopal with 29.10 lakh registrations, AIIMS Bhubaneswar with 23.93 lakh registrations, AIIMS Patna with 19.62 lakh registrations, and AIIMS Raipur with 18.63 lakh registrations.
The Health Ministry has termed these institutions as the model ones for leveraging the ABDM-enabled digital services in healthcare delivery.
ABHA connects registration with digital health services
The Scan and Register service not only allows registering a citizen at a hospital but also contributes to the broader digital health ecosystem of ABHA.
By using this method, the user can share their ABHA profile data with specific health facilities, having given their consent. Thus, connecting patients to their digital health records and enabling their further use in the health data ecosystem becomes possible.
The Health Ministry highlighted that the Scan and Register service has become one of the most popular digital health services in the country after its introduction, helping to digitize the registration of millions of patients for outpatient procedures.
NHA chief calls milestone a sign of growing trust
On the auspicious occasion of crossing 25 crore OPD registrations in the national digital health mission, Dr. Sunil Kumar Barnwal, CEO, National Health Authority, expressed delight at the response generated by the service from both citizens as well as healthcare providers, saying that it reflected people's faith in the digital health ecosystem of the country.
While talking about the benefits of the services, he said that the ease in the registration process had not only enhanced convenience for patients but had also contributed to faster processing at healthcare facilities, apart from offering an alternate channel for availing of services. He added that it also demonstrated the potential of the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission to create an interoperable, secure and citizen-centric digital health ecosystem.
The CEO noted that with the "Scan and Register" service recording more than two-and-a-half crore OPD registrations, this development marked another step forward in digitizing hospital processes, saying that the rising number of QR code scans at hospitals and healthcare centres across the country reflected the increased adoption of QR code-based registration as well as services enabled through the Ayushman Bharat Health Account (ABHA).
Disclaimer: This article contains information based solely on the reports provided by the Union Health Ministry as mentioned in the given material. The figures, statements, and claims have been made based on the given reports and have not been independently verified beyond the given information.