Off Course

Bengaluru based Cloudphysician Healthcare was set up two years ago to deliver ICU services remotely to hospitals in far flung areas. Trained ICU doctors are in acute shortage in India about 4,500 doctors cover three lakh beds. So, Cloudphysician puts cameras and software at the bedside to send real time audio video feeds from the ICU to its command centre where doctors provide consultation within 30 seconds.

The start up is heavily dependent on broadband connections when it operates in Tier II and Tier III cities of Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. It prefers leased lines for uninterrupted Internet access but these are not available everywhere. Dileep Raman, a US trained doctor and co founder of the company, says a robust 5G network could be a game changer in these cases. "As much as we use it, BSNL has its shortcomings. The latency in 4G is 200 milliseconds. With low latency 5G tech, we will not only have high bandwidth but will be able to monitor patients with 1,080p high definition videos. We will be able to observe minute details in eyeballs, skin textures and breathing patterns. 5G is going to be a shot in the arm for players like us. We could even use it as a backbone network."

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