Ayushman Arogya Mandir (AAM)

Why Was Ayushman Arogya Mandir Introduced

India always had an issue of deficit at the primary care level in public healthcare. NRHM (2005) and NUHM (2013), constituting the National Health Mission, improved healthcare infrastructure across the country in a robust way. However, it did not cover a vast chunk of other lifestyle diseases and chronic ailments including diabetes, hypertension, mental disorders, different cancers. Many families had to move to the district hospitals/private centres with huge expenses.

Ayushman Arogya Mandir fills this lacuna. Through upgrading of the package of services at sub-centre and PHC, capacity-building for CHOs, creating linkage with Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission, the first touch point now deals with all sorts of health problems at its doorstep and free of cost.

Ayushman Arogya Mandir- Key Highlights

Who Benefits from Ayushman Arogya Mandir

Unlike health insurance schemes like PM-JAY, state schemes, Ayushman Arogya Mandir is universal. Not everyone needs to be registered or have an income statement, no card is required. Anyone residing in India has the right to come in and avail of free primary health services. The centres are uniquely designed to support:

• The NRHM (National Rural Health Mission) beneficiaries are the rural population.
• The National Urban Health Mission (NUHM) covers the urban poor population.
• Women who require maternal, reproductive and antenatal services.
• Children in need of immunisation and nutrition support
• Vulnerable older people requiring long-term disease management
• People who need mental health care and palliative care

What Does Ayushman Arogya Mandir Cover

All services are free. Essential medicines and basic diagnostics are provided at no cost at the centre level.

How Ayushman Arogya Mandir Connects to Other Schemes

Ayushman Arogya Mandir is the gateway to a broader health system and collaborates with various central schemes:

• Ayushman Bharat PM-JAY: If a condition identified at AAM necessitates hospitalisation, the patient is referred to PM-JAY empanelled hospital for secondary/tertiary care up to Rs. 5 lakh per family per year.
• Janani Suraksha Yojana (JSY): Antenatal care doctors at AAM could benefit the pregnant women by also providing them the cash benefit of Janani Suraksha Yojana (JSY) for institutional delivery at government hospitals.
• Nikshay Poshan Yojana: TB patients identified at AAM will get nutritional support under Nikshay Poshan Yojana, worth ₹1,000 per month, throughout their treatment.
• Rashtriya Arogya Nidhi (RAN): For patients referred from AAM whose treatment costs exceed PM-JAY limits, RAN provides one-time financial assistance of up to ₹15 lakh at government super-specialty hospitals.
• Mission Vatsalya: Children in institutional care referred to AAM for primary healthcare can avail of full service package, and link to the specialist referral pathway, if required.

The Frontline Workforce Behind AAM

The core of Ayushman Arogya Mandir is its front-line workforce. Every modernized sub-centre has a Community Health Officer (CHO) on the premises. The CHOs are usually nursing or paramedic graduates trained in community health for a six month bridge course. The CHO works closely with ASHA (Accredited Social Health Activist) workers and ANM (Auxiliary Nurse Midwife) workers.

The team helps with home visits, health screenings, monitoring for chronic diseases, linking to specialists for referred care. In areas where clinics and specialist hospitals are far off like rural tribal areas or urban slums, this team is frequently the only available access point for a patient.

Ayushman Arogya Mandir and the Digital Health Mission

Integrating the Every AAM of the National Digital Health Mission into one digital platform, recently rechristened the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission. A patient gets an ABHA number (Ayushman Bharat Health Account) and this ensures his test reports, history of prescriptions and tests, along with his history of diseases, are recorded digitally so he does not need to revisit every single hospital.

A patient detected with diabetes at an AAM in rural Odisha can access his medical information at the district hospital without going through the entire process once more.It is a significant step toward continuity of care for populations that have historically had none.

Helpline and Support

The Ayushman Arogya Mandir represents India's largest initiative towards providing universal primary healthcare. Built upon the frameworks of NRHM and NUHM, under the National Health Mission (NHM) umbrella, and tied in with the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission, AAM delivers 12 free healthcare service packages to all citizens at their homes.

It serves as the focal point of India's integrated public health system, linking to PM-JAY (for hospitalisation), Janani Suraksha Yojana (for maternity care), Nikshay Poshan Yojana (for nutritional needs in TB), and Rashtriya Arogya Nidhi (for severe conditions). For more information, connect with your nearest ASHA worker or go to nhm.gov.in.