HELPING THE UNDERSERVED POPULATIONS

Health equity considerations and practical solutions need to be promoted for the most vulnerable – individuals subject to social discrimination and stigmatization, migrant workers, patients without proper housing and shelter, populations without access to proper health care and individuals who cannot care for themselves such as the elderly. We look forward to seeing solutions that can help deliver relief to the underserved populations effectively, efficiently and in a timely manner.

Track A:  Supporting marginalized communities confronting the pandemic

The pandemic has disproportionately impacted marginalized communities – primarily, migrant workers who have lost access to basic needs such as housing, healthcare, nutrition, and livelihood.  These communities are also susceptible to higher prevalence and transmission of COVID-19 due to several factors, including the lack of resources necessary to care for themselves and others in the community. 

• What are some innovative ways in which the private sector can partner with NGOs and/or government organizations to develop & implement solutions in healthcare, housing, rehabilitation, and finance to avert any undesirable health impact of migration and/or reverse migration? 

• How can care be delivered to people who are unable to care for themselves or have limited or no access to care? 

• How do we restore normalcy in terms of nutrition and employment in their day-to-day lives?

Track B: Delivering access to quality education in rural and semi-urban areas in times of the pandemic

Due to the disruption caused by the pandemic, educational institutions are scrambling to provide standardized and uninterrupted services to students. At best, educational opportunities are currently available only to those who have access to technology, computers, and the internet. 

• How can we enable continued delivery of high-quality education to children from underprivileged communities without access to technology? 

• How can we support the emotional and social growth of children under such trying conditions? 

• How do educational facilities regroup and restructure to provide reliable and cohesive education to rural students and, what measures are required to transition to normalcy post-COVID-19?

• How do we as a community support those who are trying to volunteer and educate students during the pandemic?

REVIVING THE INFORMAL ECONOMY

With the informal economy in India accounting for more than 80% of non-agricultural employment, helping develop policies and forging private-public initiatives are critical in reviving the informal economy. In India, the trade-off between mitigating the spread of virus and reviving the informal economy has been particularly striking. Daily wage workers without employment certainty or safety nets, are facing serious hardships. Whether it is balancing the need for short term cashflows or providing a sustainable model and roadmap to recovery for small business owners and the “gig-economy”, we look forward to solutions that can act as a force multiplier in helping the country stand back up and contribute to net GDP growth.

Track C: Addressing key challenges faced by micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs)

The informal economy is a significant contributor to India’s GDP and employs about 80% of the Indian workforce. More than 94% of India’s female labor force is employed in the informal sector. Roughly 350 million non-migrant, self-employed, small family businesses, and casual labor have been hit by the lockdown. An additional 40 million are estimated to be migrant workers.

• How can we assist the displaced informal sector workers locally while ensuring their safe return to work? How can MSMEs that require physical labor adhere to social distancing norms while continuing production?

• What innovative solutions including digitization, e-commerce, etc. can be developed to enable MSMEs to be more resilient and self-sufficient?

• What are some ways in which we can reinforce financial regulation for the informal workforce as both long term and short-term solutions?

• How can we identify and support industries that have been most impacted by the pandemic, such as the agriculture sector?

Track D: Best utilization of government and private funds to reactivate the informal economy

Daily wage workers without employment certainty or safety nets are facing serious hardships. It is critical to balance the need for short term cash flows, while providing a sustainable model and roadmap to recovery for small business owners and the “gig-economy”. While there have been several initiatives for relief packages by the government and corporate social responsibility (CSR) benefits, reports highlight problems with respect to both understanding and accessing these resources. 

• How do we make information pertaining to government schemes and CSR programs more readily available to target groups? 

• How do we make sure benefits are easily accessible; including but not limited to supplies, ration and monetary aid? 

• What are the logistics of distributing these resources? How can we create equitable distribution of resources through all sectors, across the nation?

• What are some ways in which we can increase transparency of the overall process to ensure that the resources reach the right beneficiaries? 

STRENGTHENING HEALTHCARE SYSTEMS

The pandemic has caused undue stress on the healthcare sector in India. It has hampered the operational and tactical aspects of healthcare delivery across the country. Physicians, nurses, paramedics and other healthcare workers are overworked and under-appreciated, directly impacting their morale and willingness to serve at a time of crisis. Further, the situation has made it difficult for those affected by the pandemic to seek prompt medical attention or ancillary support services to effectively combat COVID19 and other critical illnesses. We invite the participants to rationalize, ideate and generate innovative solutions by addressing the lack of consistent private sector contribution to COVID therapeutics, irregularity in healthcare costs, increasing accessibility of COVID19 care (both fiscal and physical), strengthening quality check measures of personal protective equipment, ensuring the safety of frontline medical workers, improving testing (capacity, cost, reporting and speed), and any other solutions that can bolster the healthcare system.

Track E: Developing new ways to deliver care in a COVID-19 and post COVID-19 world

The pandemic has caused undue stress on the healthcare sector in India. It has hampered the operational and tactical aspects of healthcare delivery across the country. Further, the situation has made it difficult for those affected by the pandemic to seek prompt medical attention or ancillary support services to effectively combat COVID-19 and other critical illnesses. 

• How can we enhance existing primary healthcare centers to deliver care for non-COVID-19 patients (maternal/fetal health care, nonsurgical emergencies, chronic disease care, etc.)? 

• What are some ways by which we can work towards incorporating technology and tele-healthcare services into existing healthcare systems? 

• How can we improve the coordination of information between testing centers, blood-banks and treatment facilities for the use of convalescent plasma or other scientifically proven methods of treatment?

Track F: Strengthening coordination across healthcare institutions (public and private) to build a robust ecosystem

There is significant information asymmetry and lack of communication of necessary data across the health care sector. There is a pressing and time-sensitive need to optimize recording practices and facilitate information sharing. 

• How can we better collaborate to build a more integrated and robust ecosystem to empower sustainable solutions? 

• How can we help healthcare facilities track the availability of beds and communicate information amongst public and private institutions? 

• How do we best take advantage of available data to plan for surge capacity by converting more private non-COVID-19 facilities to COVID-19 care facilities? 

• How can government and private hospitals coordinate costs of care for COVID-19 patients with more transparency and efficacy?

Track G: Ensuring safety & well-being of frontline workforce & healthcare practitioners

The frontline healthcare workforce including physicians, nurses, paramedics and other healthcare workers are overworked and under-appreciated, directly impacting their morale and ability to serve at a time of crisis. It is especially important that we address the stress and anxiety faced by healthcare workers to prevent burnout. 

• How can we ensure that the front-line workers, physicians, and nurses at hospitals deliver care without jeopardizing their own health with easy access to PPE and mental health support resources? 

• How can we mitigate or eliminate the stigma surrounding healthcare providers during COVID-19 and ensure their safety?

• How do we manage resource allocation and distribution among the various ranks of the frontline workforce, including but not limited to doctors, paramedics, nurses, sanitation and maintenance workforce? 

 Track H: Providing mental health support resources 

The lack of necessary mental health resources and failure to destigmatize mental health problems has been a pressing and consistent issue throughout India for several decades, exacerbated during this COVID-19 pandemic. In these trying and isolating times, such resources are more necessary than ever. Some particularly vulnerable groups during this time are those quarantining alone. 

• How can we increase awareness of potential mental health issues, coping mechanisms and treatment options? 

• How can we provide frontline workforce access to mental health resources while keeping in mind their extensive work hours and alienating circumstances? 

• How can we remove the stigma of accessing mental health resources? 

• What are some ways in which we can increase access to available self-help resources among the affected populations? 

COMBATING MISINFORMATION & FRAUD

Whether its social media posts or other forms of information consumption, there is a constant influx of distrustful information being churned out and spread consciously or unconsciously. With no easy way to fact-check, stopping the propagation of misinformation becomes difficult. At the same time, there are opportunities to help expand the dialogue and remove the “stigma” of COVID19 diagnosis to allow the transparency necessary in limiting transmission, and educating individuals regarding timely healthcare access, PPE disposal, social isolation and much more. We invite the participants to find ways to help accurately identify and stymie the spread of misinformation, while helping find critical information that is essential in combating improperly sensationalized information.

Track I: Highlighting and communicating COVID-19 information that is scientifically accurate

One of the key challenges of the pandemic has been misinformation and disinformation about the COVID-19 pandemic.  This has led to a variety of problems, including stigma from the disease, failing to take appropriate measures, and getting the right treatment. 

• How do we enable seamless flow of trustworthy news and scientific facts to the broader population? 

• How do we equip citizens with the right information to combat the constant, viral stream of distrustful information from social media and other sources? 

• How can we encourage people to take appropriate preventative measures, to seek proper treatment and avoid excessive or incorrect use of unapproved medicines and treatment? 

• What can we do to combat the stigma of COVID-19 that is created due to unbalanced and sensationalized news?

 Track J: Combating poor quality control and fraud during the pandemic

COVID-19 has disrupted the quality and reliability of the healthcare supply chain due to the unexpectedly high demand and supply side issues, such as reduced workforce, last-mile connectivity, and insufficient funds.  This has led to the entry of poor quality, counterfeit, or fraudulent products into the supply chain. 

• How do we arm the public with information and data necessary to deter fraudsters? 

• What defensive mechanisms can suppliers use to keep the counterfeit products out and protect themselves from losses? 

• How do we ensure that the quality of critical supplies such as testing kits and PPE is maintained?  

• How do we ensure transparency in healthcare costs to protect COVID-19 patients from overpaying for healthcare products and services?