India’s civilian-military medical collaboration transforming health care
Mandeep Singh
India is setting a precedent for integrating military medical research into national health services to benefit troops and civilians alike. The progress is fueled by collaborations among military and civilian medical establishments and by extending the benefits of military medical research to civilian patients.
The Indian Armed Forces’ Command Hospital in Pune recently became the first government hospital in the nation to adopt the use of piezoelectric bone conduction hearing implants, the Ministry of Defence (MOD) announced. The technology treats severe hearing impairments that cannot be resolved with conventional hearing aids or surgeries. Patients fitted with the implants, including children and adults, have experienced significant hearing improvement.
“There are certain groups of patients with conductive/mixed hearing loss or patients with single sided deafness, who are not candidates for cochlear implantation and do not benefit with hearing aids or middle ear surgery,” the MOD stated in April 2024. “Bone conduction implantation is the definitive hearing solution in such groups of patients to rehabilitate them, and the Armed Forces Medical Services [AFMS] were quick to realize this.”
The high cost of such technology has limited its availability, but the AFMS initiative could help pave the way for widespread adoption.
The implant procedures are an example of expanding civilian-military collaboration in the health sector. In September 2023, the MOD announced the launch of an AFMS chapter under the Association of Physicians of India. The move pairs the AFMS — which provides health care to active and retired military personnel and their dependents — with an organization of more than 20,000 physicians.
“By uniting some of the finest minds committed to both national service and the advancement of military medicine, the [chapter] aims to foster unity and excellence,” the MOD stated.
In April 2024, the AFMS signed a memorandum of understanding with the Indian Council of Medical Research to spearhead research and development in areas critical to military effectiveness and public health, including high-altitude medicine, trauma care, infectious diseases and aerospace medicine.
Under the agreement, AFMS officers are eligible to enroll in the council’s doctorate program, including courses on medicinal plants, microbiology, biotechnology, pharmacology, natural product chemistry, public health and biostatistics.
In mountain regions such as Siachen and Ladakh, where Indian troops are frequently stationed, health issues such as acute mountain sickness and high-altitude pulmonary edema pose significant challenges. The joint research aims to develop more effective treatments and preventive measures to enhance troops’ endurance and acclimation in such extreme environments.
The Indian Army also has teamed with the All India Institute of Medical Sciences to research altitude-related illnesses.
Also in 2024, the AFMS signed agreements with Indian Institutes of Technology in Kanpur and Roorkee to enhance medical care for military personnel. The agreements seek to leverage technologies such as artificial intelligence, machine learning and robotics for medical research, and to provide educational opportunities for AFMS personnel, according to media reports.
Mandeep Singh is a FORUM contributor reporting from New Delhi, India.
