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In a landmark development poised to transform the global standing of traditional medicine systems, an agreement has been signed between the Ministry of Ayush and the World Health Organization (WHO). The agreement marks the beginning of work on a dedicated Traditional Medicine module under the International Classification of Health Interventions (ICHI).
The ICHI, complementing WHO’s International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11), documents what treatments and health interventions are administered.
With the inclusion of a traditional medicine module, therapies from Ayurveda, Yoga, Siddha, and Unani systems—such as Panchakarma, Yoga therapy, Unani regimens, and Siddha procedures—will now be recognised in globally standardised terms.
This will bring about multiple benefits:
● Transparent billing and fair pricing for Ayush services.
● Smoother integration of Ayush treatments in health insurance coverage.
● Enhanced hospital management, clinical documentation, and health research.
● Most importantly, greater global accessibility to Ayush interventions.
The combined impact of ICD-11 for diseases and the new ICHI module for interventions will ensure that Ayush becomes an integral, evidence-based, and policy-recognised part of global healthcare systems.
