Ayu 2.0: AI for Clinical Care Assistance Gets Smarter!

Ayu 2.0 is Intelehealth’s clinical decision support system — an evidence-based tool designed to support frontline providers at the point of care, precisely when and where it matters most. 

Built with over 250+ structured clinical protocols, Ayu 2.0 guides health workers through systematic patient history capture and connects that information to real-time clinical decision-making by the consulting doctor. 

This year, Ayu 2.0’s AI capabilities were substantially enhanced: 

TOWARDS PRODUCTION-GRADE USAGE
AI-CDSS moved from study readiness toward production-grade usage, including Differential Diagnosis(DDx), Treatment Plan(TTx), and safety validation processes.

BETTER DATA QUALITY
Enabled structured, machine-readable clinical data collection — improving data quality and consistency across deployments.

EASIER CONVERSION PIPELINE
Reduced protocol maintenance overhead through a generic, automated conversion pipeline.

MAKING AYU SCALABLE
Established a scalable foundation for converting 250+ protocols without rebuilding rendering logic each time.

As per our latest study conducted in Nashik, with the help of AI:

• – Diagnostic accuracy improved by 12%.
• – Consultation time reduced by 47%.
• – Prescribing safety of the treatment improved by 54% (indicating fewer dosage errors, drug interactions, and unnecessary duplications).
• – Of the AI-generated diagnostic suggestions, 90.8% were rated ‘very appropriate’ by independent clinical evaluators. 
• – The correct diagnosis was included in the top 5 differential diagnoses 93% of the time. 
• – Under Treatment Planning, AI-assisted plans were deemed to be more complete consistently including lifestyle advice, follow-up, and investigations alongside medications. 
• – Early audio or speech processing work showed approximately 74% high-quality transcript output.

eZazi: Making Labour Care Guide Easier, Better

eZazi is Intelehealth’s digital labour monitoring platform, built in compliance with the WHO Labour Care Guide — the international standard for intrapartum care. Designed for skilled birth attendants and remote obstetricians working in under-resourced settings, it replaces paper-based partograms with real-time, structured clinical workflows.

Notably, in 2024, eZazi’s clinical usability was formally validated through structured interviews with eight OB-GYN clinical champions from UNICEF, MSF, Jhpiego, and FOGSI. The results speak for themselves: 100% (all respondents) rated experience as ‘Good’ or ‘Very Good’; 87.5% (strong signal) rated instructions to be ‘Very Clear’; 75% (positive rating) rated UI to be ‘Very Understandable’; 100% (feasibility) found the app to be ‘feasible’ given there is training.

This informs our 2025–2026 roadmap.

Features

RISK SCORING, ALERTS, AND REMINDERS
Automated visual and sound alerts for abnormal readings — enabling immediate triage based on clinical risk profile rather than end-of-shift review.

TELECONSULTATION SUITE
Integrated video, audio, and chat enabling remote OB-GYNs to review cases, provide real-time guidance, and participate in shared clinical decisions from any location.

OFFLINE-FIRST ARCHITECTURE
Observations recorded without internet connectivity and synced to the cloud on restoration. Compatible with low-cost tablets and a wide range of mobile devices.

REAL-TIME DASHBOARD
Central visibility across all active labour cases at a facility — with export capability to surveillance and health information systems.

WEB PLATFORM EXPANSION
Browser-based workflows with lightweight location-scoped APIs, FHIR R4 compliance, and CI/CD-governed releases — extending access beyond mobile.

All the Upgrades for our Intelehealth App!

Intelehealth, our keystone app got multiple upgrades this year.

The open-source telemedicine platform built for health systems operating in low-resource environments is interoperable, works well in low-bandwidth situations, has more languages to offer and has integrated some really innovative Point of Care device features.

The app continues to enable low-bandwidth video consultations, appointment management, and integrated electronic medical records — equipping frontline health workers and clinicians to deliver structured, continuous care without requiring new physical infrastructure. It is customisable for the specific project requirement of a partner.

Here are the key ways in which the app got better and richer this past year:

NEW BASELINE QUESTIONNAIRES
Baseline Survey are enhanced to support the selection logic mechanism for the NCD protocols included in the NCD screening process.

 WEB-BASED HEALTH WORKER PORTAL
  Launched alongside the existing mobile application, extending access to browser-based workflows.

IMPROVED TELECONSULT FEATURE
The audio and video calling features of WebRTC are enhanced to improve efficiency, particularly in areas with lower bandwidth.

APPLICATION STABILITY IMPROVED
Crash-free user rates rose from 68% to 96%, and initial application sync time reduced by 90%.

NEW LINGUISTIC SUPPORT
Tamil and Telugu were added as supported languages, expanding reach into new linguistic communities.

FHIR R4-compliant data capture
Structured, standardised clinical data through bulk conversion of clinical mindmaps — enabling interoperability with national health systems.

ABDM Compliant
Positioned the platform for seamless integration with external health information systems and national digital health initiatives like ABDM.

What if one could save 2 million lives globally by investing as little as US$ 0.24 per patient per year?

Wouldn’t that be a great investment? The WHO report- “Going digital for noncommunicable diseases” shows exactly such a pathway. Noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), particularly cardiovascular diseases, cancers, diabetes and chronic respiratory diseases, are responsible for 74% of deaths globally and negatively impact the lives of millions more. Here are some of the key takeaways from the report:

1. Digital Health’s Role in Addressing NCDs: Telemedicine is particularly well-suited for managing chronic diseases, which require continuous monitoring and long-term care.Digital health technologies, including telemedicine, mobile apps, and chatbots, offer innovative ways to improve prevention, management, and treatment of NCDs.

2. Telemedicine: A Game-Changer for Remote Care: Currently one of the biggest challenges facing the public healthcare system is the sheer cost of building and supporting infrastructure to provide care for rural and underserved communities. Telemedicine allows for remote teleconsultations and continuous monitoring of chronic conditions, reducing the need for hospital visits. One is able to offer real-time care and improved decision-making without any additional time and money spent on travel and other logistical arrangements at the patient’s end.

3. Cost-Effective Solutions with High Returns on Healthcare Outcomes: A minimal investment of US $ 0.24 per patient annually in digital tools could save over 2 million lives and bring US $199 billion in economic benefits by 2033. There is a return on investment of 19 US $ on every US $ invested. Telemedicine reduces hospitalisation rates and long-term healthcare costs, making it a highly cost-effective solution.

4.Barriers and Challenges in implementing Telemedicine: Some key barriers include inadequate digital infrastructure in low-resource settings, limited digital literacy (in both patients and healthcare providers), and concerns over data privacy and regulation. To overcome these, one needs to invest in a variety of digital health technologies, train healthcare providers as well as individuals located within communities, and shape the right kind of digital governance policies and structure to ensure equitable access to digital healthcare.

5. The Future of Healthcare is Digital: Digital health has transformative potential for achieving universal health coverage. Telemedicine, as part of a broader digital health ecosystem, holds the promise of transforming healthcare delivery, making it more inclusive, efficient, and patient-centered. Its potential to improve NCD outcomes, particularly in underserved populations, makes it an indispensable tool for the future of global health.

You can access some notable case studies in the report. The document can be accessed here.

Intelehealth will be working with the task force at WHO to help turn this vision into a reality. We are committed to helping build an ecosystem that provides healthcare to the widest possible cross-section of underserved populations across geographies.

Intelehealth’s study in Nashik District aims to tackle Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM) through an innovative app-based plan.

For children under five who suffer from Severe Acute Malnutrition(SAM), the mortality rate goes up by 5-8 times compared to well-nourished children. Yet, parents of 54% of such children who had been referred to a hospital or Nutritional Rehabilitation Centre (NRC) in India were unable to follow through with the referrals. In the absence of specialised care within the community, the role of such care centres and government hospitals remains essential in improving the health of these children. These are the first set of resources for low-income families in both rural and urban areas. 

Nashik, a district in the western state of Maharashtra, has one of the highest numbers of severely malnourished children. Right since its inception, Intelehealth has been working in the region with communities that have little or no access to healthcare. The challenge of creating a community-based solution in these forested, hilly terrains spoke directly to its mission and so was born a research study to examine the role of telemedicine in improving outcomes for children with Severe Acute Malnutrition(SAM). 

For families living in remote regions, accessing NRCs is an ordeal. Usually, such centres are attached to district hospitals and have 10-20 beds. Each such centre is meant to serve hundreds if not thousands of care-seeking families. Vast swathes of land can fall under a district and families that are willing to travel have to often spend considerable amounts of time and money to get here. Occupied beds at the centre translates to additional wait times. That aside, parents have also to consider how to attend to the needs of their other children back home. Who will cook for them? Will the relatives be able to take good care of them? If one is a daily-wage worker, travelling these distances can also mean a loss of income – income that directly impacts their daily meals.  It is not surprising then that even among the 46% who sign up for the treatment provided at such centres, 23% return without getting any service. That means a staggering 78% of children with severe malnutrition are not getting the care they need.

The telemedicine-based SAM pilot intervention and research study by Intelehealth is being carried out in 30 remote villages in the region. The first step is to link the community with a health worker, also known as Sakhi or friend, who is suitably trained and supported by a medical supervisor and usually resides in the community. They assess and understand nutritional requirements of these children and put the families in touch with doctors and nutrition experts via  teleconsultations. If the doctor recommends supplementary food  or medicines, these can be easily availed directly or through government provisions. Similarly, linkages to local  medicine supplies  and diagnostic labs can also be arranged. 

The clinical protocol of the application plays a vital role in managing the health of these children and assessing their comorbidities. With consistent telemedicine services and linkages to the government centres, one can easily address emergencies over time. The app makes it possible to geographically locate the cases with higher precision, manage more SAM cases at the community level and refer only the most severe ones to the nearest NRC.

Further, a control group is essential to understand the efficacy of such a programme. To accurately assess the effectiveness of such a Community-based Management of Acute Malnutrition Intervention (CMAM), part of the study focuses especially on children in two blocks in Nashik. One group will receive tech-enabled nutritional intervention and the control group will continue to receive standard medical care (referral to an NRC). We will follow both groups to assess if the CMAM intervention is as clinically effective as in-person care at an NRC while being more accessible, affordable for patients, as well as more cost effective for the health system.

According to UNICEF, South Asia is home to roughly half of the world’s severely malnourished children.  With a telemedicine-based care mechanism that is rooted in the community, one can shift the current burden away from the NRCs and district hospitals and truly bring the solution home.