Health Minister flags off nine ‘Arogya Sethu’ mobile health units

Minister for Health and Family Welfare Dinesh Gundu Rao here on Friday flagged off nine ‘Arogya Sethu’ mobile health units (MHUs) aimed at delivering primary healthcare services to people living in inaccessible, forest and hilly regions of Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts.

Of the MHUs, five are for Dakshina Kannada and four for Udupi district.

Speaking on the occasion, the Minister said that the initiative is intended to ensure that quality healthcare reaches citizens who have so far remained outside the formal health system.

Each mobile health unit will be staffed with an MBBS doctor, a nurse, and a laboratory technician. The services offered will include out-patient consultations, basic diagnostic tests using rapid diagnostic kits, free medicines, referral services, and community health monitoring. The units will also support the implementation of national and State health programmes in remote regions.

As per the operational plan, each unit will conduct medical camps in two to three villages a day on fixed schedules, with prior intimation to residents. The vehicles have been procured on an outsourcing basis, while human resources will be engaged on a contractual basis.

Officials said the operational cost has been pegged at ₹1.92 lakh per unit per month.