E-medical records to be applied nationwide in July

Speaking at the seminar in HCMC on promoting the application of e-medical records, Tuong said that in end-2017, the Ministry of Health approved a plan to apply information technology at healthcare centers in communes and districts.

The Information Technology Department was assigned to build software for e-medical records, with a roadmap for spreading it nationwide in July, Tuong added.

The country has seen 31 provinces and cities employing e-medical records at healthcare facilities to date, Tuong said.

Although many IT enterprises have e-medical record software, only Viettel, Vietnam Posts and Telecommunications Group, Global Link Company and the IT application center of the Information Technology Department have popularized their software in some localities.

According to reports by some localities, other firms, such as Digital Solutions HD and NIDI Tech Solutions, have also offered their software at these localities. The department has not yet carried out an assessment of the software at these localities.

However, the department is concerned that there is no connection between the IT firms providing e-medical record software, thus creating an inconvenience for patients as they cannot use their e-medical records in other provinces or cities.

To handle the problem, the department is collaborating with the Vietnam Social Security office to work out a method to build codes, issue regulations on codes, open user accounts and stipulate management processes.

The method is aimed at connecting e-medical records between localities to bring convenience to patients and healthcare staff.