The National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences on Friday launched a registry of patients and a portal of records called e-Manas. The platform includes a state-wide registry of all facilities and professionals providing mental health care with online registration. It will record basic health records of patients, access to patient records by registered professionals with the consent of the patient among others.
This platform has been developed by NIMHANS and International Institute of Information Technology, Bengaluru (IIIT-B). Although made by two government entities, the portal will be made available for all mental health professionals and establishments in Karnataka, in the public and private sector.
In a statement NIMHANS said, "The key features of the solution include:a state-wide registry of all facilities and professionals providing mental health care with online registration, recording of basic health records of patients, access to patient health records by registered professionals with the consent of the patient, facilities for patients and caregivers to register grievances, and integration with other health services like Ayushman Bharath – Arogya Karnataka, 104, 108, etc."
NIMHANS said that the platform would maintain basic medical records (BMR) of patients seeking OPD and IPD (out and in patient department) services.
This platform will bring all the stakeholders from a mental health care perspective together such as Karnataka State Mental Health Authority, Karnataka State Mental Health Review Board, all public and private mental health care establishments, mental health professionals (psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, mental health nurses), persons with mental illness and their caregivers, the statement further added.
Speaking on the same, S Sadagopan, Director, IIIT-Bangalore, said, “IT (Information Technology) solutions can help improve the availability, accessibility, affordability and quality of healthcare services. Our Institute, through our E-Health Research Center is honoured to partner with the Government of Karnataka and NIMHANS to help develop technology-based solutions for public health services. e-Manas provides a scalable, secure platform for managing mental health data and workflows, and is an important step in the digital transformation of mental healthcare.”
This service was launched on the same day the foundation stone for NIMHANS’s new north campus was laid virtually by Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa.
The facility will have out-patient and counselling services for trauma and mental health. This is a forerunner of a larger hospital complex that it has been planning. In the current out-patient services. Online scheduling of appointments and teleconsultations will also be provided.
“The service also intends to shift patients from this locality away from NIMHANS. Thereby the burden of the patients from the northern part of Bengaluru to travel all the way to NIMHANS will be reduced. For this purpose, the building is being built and the services are expected to be available within a year from now,” NIMHANS said in the statement