Karnataka Govt brings in private firm to telemonitor Covid-19 patients in home isolation

The government has roped in a private firm to monitor Covid patients in home quarantine in Bengaluru and elsewhere in the state.

With more people opting to remain in home isolation after testing positive for Covid-19, the Department of Health and Family Welfare has issued a contract to Portea Medical run by Health Vista India Private Limited.

The firm will call up patients under home isolation to monitor their health condition daily.

In the initial days of the pandemic, the department hired NGO ;Swasth and paid the organisation Rs 95 per call per patient for five to six days. Beginning July 17, the project went on up to September 10, during which time it monitored 5,204 patients.

After incurring Rs 24.71 lakh for nearly two months for the teleconsultation project, the department floated a tender on September 10 to finalise an agency that can monitor patients under home isolation.

Rs 69 per call

Dr Prabhudev Gowda, Deputy Director, Health and Family Welfare Department, said: “The government has fixed the rate at Rs 69 per call.”

The government estimates that a maximum of five phone calls will be made to the patients in home isolation over six to eight days. “Approximately, the government will be spending Rs 300 on a patient and Rs 7.75 lakh per day on 2,500 patients in a day. It has fixed three months for the contract,” said Dr Gowda said, who is a member of the home isolation committee formed by the chief secretary.

The telemonitoring project was initially started in Bengaluru Urban and later extended to other districts. Of 9,338 patients onboarded for the project, 668 dropped out. While two died, 5,204 were discharged and 3,465 are currently under observation.

An estimated 4,92,101 patients are in home isolation across the state as on September 23. “The agency will call the patients on the first and fourth day, while a staff nurse will do the calling on the other days,” Dr Gowda said, adding that the patients will be given an escalation number for medical and non-medical emergencies.

“On getting (the emergency) call, we will connect them to the zonal officer, who will guide them to the quarantine teams,” Dr Gowda explained.

To qualify for home isolation, a patient requires a digital thermometer, pulse oximeter, sufficient stock of face masks, two bedrooms, and a caregiver.

Portea is required to do physical triage and tele-triage, besides asking questions during onboarding to check if the patient meets the home isolation requirements and has comorbid conditions.