Maharashtra Launches Student Health Cards Linked to Digital App
The cards will be updated after regular school health check-ups. A new digital health app will store each student’s health data.
All students in Maharashtra’s government and aided schools will now receive personalised health cards. The school education department announced this on Tuesday via a Government Resolution (GR).
The cards will be updated after regular school health check-ups. A new digital health app will store each student’s health data.
If a student requires medical attention, treatment will be provided through the Rashtriya Bal Swasthya Karyakram (RBSK). This central government scheme targets early detection and care for Defects at birth, Diseases, Deficiencies, and Developmental delays in children aged 0 to 18.
A senior official from the school education department said, “In rural areas, children have health issues such as hearing loss, imperfect vision, vitamin deficiencies, etc., which remain unnoticed. Regular health check-ups in schools will ensure that every child with any illness or physical or other difficulty is identified soon, and required medical support can be provided.”
District & Taluka Committees to Oversee Rollout
Committees will be formed at both district and taluka levels. District committees will plan annual health check-ups and manage data.
Taluka-level bodies will include local medical officers, doctors, nurses, and education officers. These teams will carry out the health check-ups in schools.
Schools will be responsible for ensuring check-ups take place on schedule. Medical inspection teams, consisting of two medical officers, one doctor, and a nurse, will visit anganwadis, schools, and ashram-shalas.
Students with severe conditions will be referred to higher medical centres per RBSK guidelines.
Digital Records to Help Track Care Across Schools
Mahendra Ganpule, former head of the Maharashtra School Principals’ Association, welcomed the move.
He said, “Such health check-ups were happening in some schools wherever the School Management Committees (SMCs) took initiatives with help from locals. However, this initiative will ensure that every child in all government schools gets this facility. It is imperative, as many times, even their parents are unaware of specific health issues.
Furthermore, digitally stored data ensures that even if a child changes school, due to parents' relocation, his or her updated health card will be accessible to the new school.”
Stay tuned for more such updates on Digital Health News.
Stay tuned for more such updates on Digital Health News
