16-year-old Coimbatore girl invents AI-based medicine dispenser

COIMBATORE: When 16-year-old Mahashri Ranjith Kumar from Coimbatore chanced upon a news article that only 13 per cent of the rural population has access to Primary Health Centres, it propelled her desire to make a positive impact through technology.

And, after months of hard work to resolve the healthcare challenges faced by rural communities, she came out with ‘Sahaayam’, an Artificial Intelligence (AI) based automated medicine dispensing kiosk. It is a device that provides easy access to essential and basic medicines for people in remote villages, where access to hospitals and pharmacies is limited.

The kiosk contains three trays, each containing basic medications for fever, cold, cough and diarrhoea.

“During trial testing of ‘Sahaayam’, I achieved absolute accuracy in delivering the right medicine as the system is AI-based. When a user touches a number designated for fever, cold, cough, and diarrhoea on the touch screen, the input gets transferred to the nano-controller and processed to dispense the right medicine. The kiosk also has a customised voice-over functionality in Tamil,” said Mahashri, who is studying Class 12 at Suguna Pip School in Coimbatore.

She recently demonstrated the functioning of the kiosk at the panchayat office in Vattalapathy village in Tirupur, where hospitals and pharmacies are out of reach.

“The 1,500-odd villagers had to travel more than four kilometres to reach the nearest medical facility. I received positive feedback from the villagers, who also requested for integration of more basic medicines in the machine to resolve their essential health care issues,” she said.

On the risks involved in taking over-the-counter pills without a doctor’s prescription, Mahashri explains that unlike those in urban areas, rural folks cannot afford to visit a doctor every time they fall sick.

“So over-the-counter medicines are a cheaper option to get rid of their ailment before it elevates into a complication that requires medical attention.

Ultimately, ‘Sahaayam’ is designed for convenience and accessibility, but not to replace personalised medical assessments. With the support of government bodies and NGO’s, I strive to make the kiosk a safer alternative by placing it under the monitoring of a supervisor. And, in a recorded voice message in the kiosk, I had clearly stated the tenure of medication, while advising the users to seek professional help, if their ailment continues,” she said.

Daughter of Ranjith Kumar, who is into business and Brindha Ranjith Kumar, an entrepreneur, Mahashri to her credit has worked on numerous projects ranging from mitigating climate change, improving health care access and purifying contaminated water.

Her dedication and contribution earned her the title of ‘Young Scientist’ at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow. She was also recently awarded the title of ‘National Water Champion’ at the Stockholm Junior Water Prize event at IIT Madras for her research on water treatment.

“I am passionate about using Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) to address urgent global challenges,” Mahashri says.