Publish Date : June 19, 2018
Ushering a unique blend of opportunity for young professionals to innovate and improve healthcare services, the first day of the Andhra Pradesh Health Festival has begun in Visakhapatnam.
The first day of the festival registered the participation of contestant from across the country, who will continue to work on the projects till 20 June, being a part of the Hackathon and Datathon completion.
The festival will continue from 18-21 June and has been organised by Medical, Health and Family welfare department- Government of Andhra Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh MedTech Zone and Elets Technomedia Pvt Ltd.
The motive behind this initiative is to improve the health status and quality of life of the people in Andhra Pradesh, by focussing on health issues with the objective of reducing disease burden, creating an enabling environment, influencing direct and indirect health determinants such as nutrition, water, sanitation and other factors like education and employment in the state.
The first day of the festival unveiled in the presence of Dr Poonam Malakondaiah, Special Chief Secretary, Health Medical & Family Welfare Department, Government of Andhra Pradesh, Dr Jintendar Sharma, Advisor (Health), Government of Andhra Pradesh, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Andhra Pradesh MedTech Zone, Pravin Kumar, Collector and District Magistrate, Visakhapatnam and several other esteemed dignitaries.
Dr Malakondaiah welcomed all the participants to the festival, commencing in Visakhapatnam. She said, “In Andhra Pradesh, technology is being used in the best possible ways to improve healthcare services, especially for those who cannot afford it. Technology is the helping us in making health, affordable and accessible to all.”
“A series of programmes have been launched in the state. This is a state with a strong technology background. Here, technology is used to leverage the level of healthcare. We are also using Information and Technology to do analytics and predict diseases for ensuring prevention in future,” she added.
Explaining more about this festival and the exciting opportunities associated with it, Dr Jintendar Sharma, Advisor (Health), Government of Andhra Pradesh, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Andhra Pradesh MedTech Zone, said , “We are set to offer you three days packed with activities to generate best of the ideas. This is for the first time that a state government is trying to utilise the data mine to gather knowledge for ensuring better solutions to the humanity.I believe knowledge resides on the other side of this table, it is with you.”
Boosting the level of excitement and enthusiasm among the participants, he added, “Today, on the first day of the festival we have two parallel tracks – Hackathon and Datathon. The best ideas would get cash prizes at the end of three days. I request you to give your heart and soul to this opportunity and create the best of the ideas for the public interest. We welcome you all to the medical capital city of India-Visakhapatnam.”
While Andhra Pradesh as a state is taking several positive steps for improving healthcare services in the state, Visakhapatnam, in particular, is contributing a whole new dimension to this cause.
Pravin Kumar, Collector and District Magistrate, Visakhapatnam said, “Andhra Pradesh as a state emphasises on a lot of services, such as improving the level of education for all, affordable services etc. We are trying our level best to make this state a sustainable society. This event, in particular, will help us in getting several bright ideas, implementation of which will lead to a better society. Visakhapatnam is the third fastest growing city in India. I hope you all contribute to the betterment of the society.”