By Ankur Goel, Managing Director, Poly India
The novel Coronavirus has turned our lives upside down. World leaders are faced with challenges they’ve never encountered before, medical professionals and staff are overworked, schools are being shut and the way we are working is completely changing. The virus is serving as a great reminder that as humans our well-being is connected and as we all hunker down, we’re realizing how much we need and value one another.
In these challenging times when social distancing is the norm, collaboration and technology that makes that connection possible is more important than ever.
Role of technology in conquering the virus
One of the most important ways in which we can combat the virus and ensure some sort of ‘normalcy’ in these troubling times is through successful collaboration and communication – whether it is between countries, between different government departments, healthcare professionals or even providing support to remote workers to ensure business continuity; ultimately, the technology that allows us to do this is going to be the savior that helps us win the fight.
The Indian government has so far made impressive and right moves, be it the nation wide lockdown to curb the spread of virus or its innovative ways of using technology to ensure that people who are under home-quarantine don’t venture out; for instance, the Karnataka government has even set up a war room to battle the virus in the state – it is using technologies like video conferencing and data analytics which are helping authorities communicate, track those in quarantine and have access to details pertaining to availability of beds, patients and resource allocation.
By leveraging technology, we can come together as one and think of innovative ways to work and support each other to help stop this global pandemic.
Some of the ways in which each sector can achieve this include –
- Healthcare –Telehealth is a technology that’s been around for years but is finding new demand now. Hospitals and health insurers can encourage patients with suspected coronavirus symptoms to try a virtual service first, rather than coming into the doctor where they might infect others and then accordingly treat patients. For instance, Cloudnine, India’s leading chain of maternity, childcare and fertility care group of hospitals headquartered in Bengaluru has launched its teleconsultation service with doctors in response to the growing public health concerns caused by the spread of the COVID-19 virus.
Medical professional across the world can use video conferencing and content sharing technologies to connect and ideate on learnings, thereby making the treatment processes more effective. Not to mention, telemedicine reduces transmission risks to both healthcare workers and patients.
2. Government Agencies – India is a very large and diverse country. To function efficiently and coordinate efforts to mitigate covid-19 down to a grass root level, it is important that administrators i.e. ministers, government employees, and bureaucrats communicate and collaborate on a regular basis. For instance, ever since the covid-19 outbreak in India, our esteemed Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has been regularly using video conferencing to connect with Chief Ministers and government bureaucrats across the nation – this helps them in making timely, efficient decisions.
In disasters such as the current pandemic, video conferencing also plays an important role in helping the government bridge the urban-rural divide and educating rural citizens on the do’s and don’ts of safe practices to combat the virus.
3. Education – Today’s students have grown up using many different types of technologies and they are comfortable with video as a medium to communicate. To keep up with closure of schools and universities during the pandemic, educators are rethinking traditional teaching methods and are adapting to the way that students learn best- i.e. through interactive learning; Universities and schools all over India are currently conducting online classes to keep its students engaged. Online summer camps are also gaining prominence.
By leveraging collaboration technology, we can break down the walls of the classroom and essentially move the classroom and the educator’s office to wherever there is internet and webcam access.
4. Ensuring business continuity – Due to the current lockdown, most employees are working from home and leaders are working hard to ensure that business continuity is not hampered in this situation. To do this successfully, companies should ensure that their employees have the right tools and technologies in place to get the job done. Collaboration technologies like video conferencing and platforms such as Microsoft Teams can be used extensively to keep the employees engaged and have more meaningful collaboration. In addition, leaders should ensure that the laptops, headsets, private corporate networks, or even employee communications tools provided for employees are up to par to support its workforce working remotely for extended periods.
In situations such as the current pandemic, the power of rapid communication and efficient collaboration is paramount. It’s a difficult period and resources are limited, but by implementing the right technology and with constant collaboration, it can help us come together and combat the pandemic.