Chandigarh: The Punjab government has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Centre for Health Research and Innovation (CHRI) to transform and strengthen the state's public health infrastructure, health and family welfare minister Dr Balbir Singh announced on Friday.
AI-Powered Healthcare Initiative
The partnership aims to bring cutting-edge artificial intelligence directly to the grassroots, exploring the role of innovative technologies in strengthening healthcare services and improving health outcomes for citizens. Under this pilot project, innovative AI-enabled technologies will be deployed across three districts of Punjab—Patiala, Mohali and Fatehgarh Sahib—to strengthen mass health screenings and early detection of cardiac and respiratory conditions, Dr Singh said.
He added, "Under this initiative, advanced AI-based ECG devices and AI stethoscopes will be deployed. This includes the Sunfox Spandan ECG device to support rapid cardiac assessment and help identify individuals requiring urgent referral, particularly those at risk of serious cardiac events. Additionally, an AI-enabled digital stethoscope (AI Steth) will be used to strengthen the screening of children for cardiac abnormalities and support timely referral for specialist evaluation and treatment."
Training and Implementation
The minister said, "As part of the rollout, healthcare providers will undergo specialised training on the use of these technologies, ensuring that innovation is seamlessly and effectively integrated into routine service delivery. The partnership will also help generate valuable implementation learnings to inform the future adoption of AI-enabled technologies across the entire health system of Punjab."
He added, "This means faster, smarter and highly accurate mass health screenings for our people, enabling the early detection of critical cardiac issues. This initiative is not only about deploying advanced devices; it is about strengthening frontline healthcare capacity, improving referral pathways and generating evidence for future scale-up across the state."
