64 PHCs in Rajkot to provide ECG test for free from mid-April

The YI, an affiliate body of the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII), will also train medical officers and nursing staff of these PHCs to use the machines.

“YI has started delivering these machines of computer mouse size and we will get all the machines over the next two weeks. Our plan is to make these services available in all our PHCs from mid-April,” Choudhary said.

The DDO further said that the machines, that cost Rs 10,000 each, will be provided free of cost to the district panchayat. “There is an increase in heart ailments and rural areas lack facilities for basic tests like ECG. The project is not limited to providing testing facilities in rural areas but to forward-link our PHCs with cardiology specialist practising in urban centres,” he said. Choudhary said that the machines can relate to smart phones and they will generate ECG in PDF format. “The PHCs will send these reports to cardiologists associated with the YIs for consultation through a dedicated WhatsApp group,” said the DDO.

The ECG home kits come with four sensors and will generate reports in 10 seconds. “At present, ECG facilities are not available even at sub-district hospitals. We aim to bridge this deficit through this project,” the officer said.

The DDO said that Rajkot district PHCs will be the first in the state to have such testing facilities.