Shruti Program - Entraview

Shruti is a program that aims to expand access to quality ear-care for underserved patients, families and communities in India and Bangladesh.  Nearly 7.5M people in India (~6% of the population) are estimated to have a hearing disability, but it has been noted by the WHO that about 80% of all deafness can be said to be avoidable. Shruti addresses this gap by creating awareness, diagnosis and treatment of chronic ear disease through our teleotology screening Product “Entraview” and its telemedicine Application – “Shruti App”.

The Product- "ENTraview" is a Made in India, Proprietary, easy-to-use smartphone-enabled digital otoscope with network-based field screening solution that enables the front-line field staff to screen and provisionally diagnose the community for any ear-related infections. It consists of following core components: an otoscope, a smartphone, a light source for the otoscope, and a mobile data SIM card. The Shruti Application is loaded onto the device to record an entire case, including images of the ear and provisional diagnosis. An additional Tele-audiology application is also loaded onto the device and lets the user conduct hearing loss screening of the patient with the help of a calibrated headset. The completed case is then transmitted to a cloud server over 3G, which can be accessed by the ENT surgeon for further treatment.

All of these components come together in a four-step process: First, trained community health workers (CHWs) conduct door-to-door screening of patients in peri-urban slum areas at no cost using the ENTraview device. Then, the hardware & software enable remote diagnosis so CHWs offer initial diagnosis and refer to nearby Shruti ENT doctor partners as needed. Patients’ care is then managed ENT partner sites, where the electronic patient record is easily accessed and finally treatment options are provided at a discount.

Medtronic Labs is a new entity of Medtronic that incubates bold ideas for global health access. It is a social business which designs healthcare delivery service models with and for underserved communities that integrate digital and product technologies across the patient care continuum. Medtronic Labs currently has a program portfolio ranging from comprehensive ear care to non-communicable diseases.

Our organization uniquely benefits from the impact-focused and hyper-localised knowledge of the Medtronic Labs entity while also drawing on the expertise and advice of the larger Medtronic organization. Medtronic is among the world’s largest medical technology, services, and solutions companies — alleviating pain, restoring health, and extending life for millions of people around the world. Founded more than 60 years ago, today we serve patients in approximately 160 countries.

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Shruti has a broad reach and measurable impact. The program has over 60 medical partners all over the country. These partners include multi-speciality hospitals, ENT Hospitals and stand-alone ENT clinics. Through Shruti over 7 lakh, people have been screened till date that number grows each day. Over 25000 ear care and hearing-impaired patients have taken various treatments and restored their hearing through Shruti network.

For corporates with a focus in healthcare impact, we show results in two different parts of the care continuum - providing active screening in underserved areas and reducing the burden at ENT hospitals by performing tasks off-site. Shruti Program establishes B2B partnerships with ENT clinics/ Hospitals in Tier 2/Tier 3 locations. Through these products/services support enables a doctor to deploy screening efforts in their catchment and funnel only the population preliminarily diagnosed with a defect to their clinics for subsidized consultation and treatment.