Health Department to deploy AI for newborn health assessments
Artificial Intelligence (AI) will soon be used to assess key health parameters in newborns, including weight, length, shoulder width and head circumference, Minister for Health
Artificial Intelligence (AI) will soon be used to assess key health parameters in newborns, including weight, length, shoulder width and head circumference, Minister for Health, Medical Education and Family Welfare Satya Kumar Yadav said on Saturday. In a press statement, the Minister said an AI-based application developed by Wadhwani AI would make monitoring the health of newborns easier and more efficient. Under the Health Mission’s Home-Based Newborn Care (HBNC) programme, ASHA workers are required to visit newborns at their homes on the 3rd, 7th, 14th, 21st, 28th and 42nd days after birth.
During these visits, they record the infant’s weight, length and other health indicators through a mobile application, enabling early detection of health problems. At present, the process is cumbersome as ASHA workers have to carry weighing scales and other equipment from one household to another. Obtaining accurate measurements can also be challenging while handling newborns. To address these issues, the State government has partnered with Wadhwani AI, which has developed an application named ‘Shishu Maapan’. The app is designed to capture all the required measurements without the need for physical contact with the infant, thereby reducing dependence on multiple devices.
According to the release, once the application is installed on a smartphone, the user only needs to position the phone near the infant. The system then records the required measurements within a short time. Before the technology is rolled out, the Health Department will create a database using videos of about 1,000 infants. After the database is developed, the AI system will be integrated with the application used by ASHA workers. The process is expected to take around three months.
Meanwhile, ASHA workers and Auxiliary Nurse Midwives (ANMs) are being trained to use the technology. The department has also begun collecting health measurements from around 1,000 newborns in Mangalagiri constituency as part of a pilot project. Based on the outcome, the technology will be expanded across the State, the release said.
The BriefWire