Indonesian puskesmas improve public health response with genAI
Community health centers, or puskesmas, in Indonesia’s West Java province, south of the capital Jakarta, are using generative AI to expand their capabilities to address serious health problems.
The Sumedang Regency recently entered into a partnership with a networking platform for Singaporean doctors Docquity to develop and launch the genAI-powered virtual assistant called TehAI.
HOW IT WORKS
TehAI reportedly has an intuitive and user-friendly chat interface that community health workers can use to access genAI-powered information. It sources information from a broad knowledge base, including scientific journals, the World Health Organization repository, the Indonesian Ministry of Health database, and Sumedang government data sources.
WHY IT IS IMPORTANT
According to a press release, the use of the genAI platform will initially focus on improving puskesmas workers’ knowledge to diagnose and treat tuberculosis, stunting and hypertension, some of the most common health conditions in Sumedang Regency.A regency is a second-level administrative division in Indonesia, directly under a province.)
In recent years, the number of tuberculosis cases in Indonesia has been rising, from an estimated 800,000 in 2020 to more than one million in 2023, with recorded deaths of around 130,000 – the second highest in the world that year, after India.
Meanwhile, Indonesia is working towards achieving a target of reducing stunting to 14% this year, from 21% in 2022, higher than the Asian average.
High blood pressure is a major health risk in the country, affecting one in three people and killing more than 400,000 people.
THE BIGGER TREND
West Java province plans to expand the rollout of TehAI to other regencies, following the pilot implementation in Sumedang.
“The success of this initiative will pave the way for its replication in other regencies in West Java, improving health care throughout the province,” said provincial secretary-general Dr. Herman Suryatman.
The inclusion of emerging technologies such as genAI in Indonesian puskesmas contributes to larger efforts to digitize rural health. This includes the mandatory introduction of EMRs and the proposed implementation of satellite internet connectivity.
Sumedang’s genAI platform project also marks Docquity’s first partnership in the public sector. In addition to this project, Docquity is also working with the regency on a program aimed at ensuring patients adhere to medication schedules, appointments, and prescribed lifestyle activities.