About ABDM

• The Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM) was launched by the Government of India in 2020 for promoting digitization of healthcare and creating an open interoperable digital health ecosystem for the country. 
• It will bridge the existing gap amongst different stakeholders of the healthcare ecosystem through digital highways.
• ABDM will create certain core building blocks or modules such as registries of individuals/citizens/patients (Health ID registry), registry of healthcare professionals (Healthcare Professionals Registry) and registry of healthcare facilities including hospitals, laboratories, pharmacies, etc (Health Facility Registry). In these registries, each of these entities is provided with a unique identifier across the ecosystem. 
• Any individual can enroll in ABDM to generate a Health ID (https://healthid.ndhm.gov.in/). Healthcare professionals recognized by Indian authorities can register on the Healthcare Professionals Registry (HPR) (https://hpr.ndhm.gov.in/en). Health facilities can register themselves on the Health Facility Registry (HFR) (https://facility.ndhm.gov.in/).
• Participation in ABDM is voluntary including for citizens. Participation of a healthcare facility or an institution is also voluntary and shall be taken by the respective management (government or private management). 

Significance

• Patients will be able to securely store and access their medical records and share them with health care providers to ensure appropriate treatment and follow-up. 
• Further, they will have the option to access health services remotely through tele-consultation and e-pharmacy. 
• ABDM will empower individuals with accurate information to enable informed decision making and increase accountability of healthcare providers.
• Similarly, health care professionals across disciplines will have better access to a patient’s medical history (with the necessary informed consent) for prescribing more appropriate and effective health interventions. 

Implementing agency

• • The National Health Authority (NHA) has been given the mandate by the government to design, build, roll-out and implement the ABDM in the country. 

• NHA is an attached office of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare with full functional autonomy.