Apollo TeleHealth crosses 1 million teleconsultations through Keonjhar Digital Dispensary initiative

Apollo TeleHealth has crossed one million teleconsultations through its Keonjhar Digital Dispensary Initiative, marking a milestone in expanding access to primary healthcare for remote tribal, Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group (PVTG) and mining communities in Odisha.

According to the organisation, the initiative has established an integrated primary healthcare ecosystem that combines virtual doctor consultations, diagnostics, pharmacy services and referral care within the public health system, reducing geographical barriers to treatment.

The initiative is being implemented by Apollo TeleHealth in collaboration with the Chief District Medical & Public Health Officer (CDM&PHO), Keonjhar, and with support from the District Mineral Foundation (DMF). The organisation said it is among the first integrated Digital Dispensary models in Odisha and demonstrates how technology-enabled public-private partnerships can strengthen healthcare delivery in underserved regions. It added that the programme has been driven by the leadership and support of the District Collector, Keonjhar, and the Chief Executive Officer, District Mineral Foundation (DMF).

In less than three years, the programme has expanded to 66 Digital Dispensaries across Keonjhar, serving more than 30,000 patients every month. According to Apollo TeleHealth, the initiative has facilitated more than one million teleconsultations and prescriptions, enabled over 200,000 diagnostic tests, and supported more than 20,000 referrals for specialised care. The organisation stated that more than 90 per cent of patients receive treatment at the point of care, reducing waiting times to between five and eight minutes while lowering the time and cost of travelling long distances for healthcare.

Launched in September 2023, the initiative was designed to address gaps in access to doctors, diagnostics and medicines across Keonjhar’s remote tribal and mining communities. By integrating teleconsultations, diagnostics, pharmacy services and referral care within the public health system, the programme brings multiple healthcare services closer to patients’ homes, enables earlier diagnosis and treatment, and supports continuity of care for patients requiring specialised medical intervention.

Commenting on the milestone, Dr. Sangita Reddy, Joint Managing Director, Apollo Hospitals Group, said, “When we started this work in Keonjhar, the goal was simple — get care to people who’d otherwise have to travel hours just to see a doctor. Crossing a million teleconsultations tells us that’s actually happening, at a scale most people wouldn’t have thought possible in a district like this. What I find most encouraging isn’t the number itself, it’s what sits behind it — diagnostics, medicines, referrals, all working together instead of as separate pieces someone has to chase down on their own. That’s really the gap in rural healthcare. It’s not that treatment doesn’t exist somewhere, it’s that reaching it in time is hard. If we can keep building models like this, ones that plug into the public health system rather than sit alongside it, I think we start to change what primary healthcare looks like for a lot of underserved parts of the country.”

Dr. Rina Pradhan, IAS, CEO, District Mineral Foundation (DMF), Keonjhar, Odisha, said, “The one million teleconsultation milestone demonstrates how District Mineral Foundation resources can create long term public health value when invested in innovative, community centric healthcare models. For a geographically dispersed district like Keonjhar, the objective was never just to introduce telemedicine, but to build an integrated primary healthcare ecosystem where consultation, diagnostics, medicines and referral services are available closer to people’s homes. The success of this initiative has strengthened our confidence that technology, when embedded within the public health system and supported through strong institutional partnerships, can significantly improve healthcare access, enable early diagnosis, and reduce avoidable delays in treatment for vulnerable communities. We believe this model offers important lessons for strengthening healthcare delivery in other underserved districts across the country.”

According to Apollo TeleHealth, the initiative has also strengthened the early detection and management of conditions including malnutrition, malaria, dengue and chronic diseases, improved utilisation of antenatal care services, and enabled referrals for patients requiring advanced treatment.

The organisation said the Digital Dispensary model, supported under the District Mineral Foundation (DMF) in Odisha, received the ASSOCHAM Health Meet & Excellence Awards 2026 in the “Excellence in Rural Health Initiative” category.

Building on this milestone, Apollo TeleHealth said it will strengthen services across its Digital Dispensaries by expanding access to specialist consultations, point-of-care diagnostics, preventive health screening, digital disease management and referral care, while improving the patient experience. The organisation also plans to explore extending the Digital Dispensary model to other tribal, remote and underserved regions, adapting the approach to local healthcare needs and supporting technology-enabled primary healthcare delivery across India.