NAMASTE Portal — India's Standardized Ayurveda Health Data

The NAMASTE portal is India's national initiative to standardise AYUSH (Ayurveda + Unani + Siddha + Sowa-Rigpa + Homoeopathy) clinical terminologies. Thrigulla SR & Narayanam S. (2023, _JAIM_) describe its purpose and use.

## What NAMASTE Stands For

**N**ational **A**YUSH **M**orbidity **A**nd **S**tandardised **T**erminologies **E**lectronic portal

## What It Does

NAMASTE addresses a long-standing gap in Indian healthcare informatics: **AYUSH systems lacked standardised terminology mappable to ICD-11**.

Without standardisation: - Two Vaidyas using slightly different terms for the same condition couldn't share data - AYUSH integration with modern hospital EMRs was impossible - Government health data couldn't track AYUSH disease burden - Clinical research couldn't aggregate cases across institutions

NAMASTE provides: - **Standardised AYUSH disease codes** - **Mapping to ICD-11 codes** - **Standard formulation names + composition** - **Standard treatment procedure codes** - **Multi-language equivalents** (English, Sanskrit, regional)

## How It's Used

**For practitioners:** - Diagnose using standard terminology - Document treatments in a way other systems recognise - Share case data for research - Bill insurance correctly

**For hospitals:** - Integrate AYUSH departments with main EMR - Track patient flow across Ayurveda + modern care - Coordinate referrals with standardised language

**For researchers:** - Aggregate clinical cases across institutions - Conduct large multi-centre studies - Quality-control case definitions

**For patients (indirectly):** - Receive coordinated care across AYUSH + modern medicine - See treatment documentation that travels between specialists - Have insurance recognise AYUSH services

## Practical Implications

**Insurance:** NAMASTE codes enable: - Star Health, Niva Bupa, others to offer AYUSH-inclusive policies - Insurance claims for Panchakarma procedures - AYUSH wellness benefits in employer insurance

**Integration:** AYUSH-modern integration becomes practical: - Modern hospital with AYUSH OPD using one EMR - Patient summary travelling between Ayurveda Vaidya + cardiologist - Coordinated treatment planning

**Research:** - CCRAS + AYUSH-funded research now uses NAMASTE for case definitions - Multi-centre Ayurveda RCTs possible with consistent terminology - Government health surveys can capture AYUSH disease burden

## Limitations

- Coverage is still expanding — not all Ayurveda conditions are codified yet - Adoption varies by state (Kerala adoption higher than national average) - Practitioner training needed for code-based documentation - Some Vaidyas resist abstraction of clinical insight into codes

## Current Status

As of 2024: - ~5,000 AYUSH terms standardised - ~80% of common Ayurveda conditions mapped to ICD-11 - ~2,000 classical formulations catalogued - Active expansion through CCRAS + NIA + state partnerships

## Future Direction

Expansion plans include: - **Procedure-specific codes** for Panchakarma + Kerala therapies - **Outcome reporting standards** (functional improvement, symptom relief) - **Doctor + facility quality indicators** - **Patient-reported outcome measures** in Ayurveda - **AI clinical decision support** built on standardised data

## What This Means for Authenticity

NAMASTE matters for Ayurveda's **medical credibility**: - Reduces "Ayurveda exceptionalism" argument that Ayurveda can't be standardised - Enables Ayurveda to participate in modern healthcare systems - Provides a basis for evidence accumulation - Protects against fraud — codes can't be fabricated like loose terminology

For Kerala specifically, this is meaningful because Kerala Ayurveda has the deepest classical tradition + the most-established clinical practice. NAMASTE codes for Kerala therapies (Pizhichil, Sirodhara, Karkidaka Chikitsa) are being formalised — preserving regional distinctiveness within national standardisation.

## How to Access

The NAMASTE portal is government-maintained and available through: - **CCRAS** (Central Council for Research in Ayurvedic Sciences) - **MoHFW AYUSH** portal - **NIA Jaipur** terminology resources

Practitioners + researchers can access full code lists; patients can verify whether their treatments use standard terminology by asking their Vaidya.

**Reference:** Thrigulla SR, Narayanam S. (2023). NAMASTE Portal and Standardised AYUSH Terminologies. _Journal of Ayurveda and Integrative Medicine._

--- **Disclaimer.** This article is for educational purposes only. Consult a qualified Ayurveda practitioner for personalised advice. _AI-generated content — pending medical review._

_Author: AyurConnect Editorial._