VietNamNet Bridge – Information technology in health check-ups, medicine management and patient treatment is helping reduce overloading in hospitals.
A doctor at Thai Binh General Hospital uses state-of-the-art equipment for diagnosis. The application of information technology is viewed as one way to reduce chronic hospital overload.
Software programmes are also being used to speed up administrative procedures, such as patient registration and payments.
IT is being used by doctors in radiology, consulting, video-conferencing and even in home health care, so patients can get care and treatment without going to a hospital.
Deputy director of Ha Noi-based Bach Mai hospital Nguyen Ngoc Hien said IT has helped reduce health check-up and treatment times, while HCM City-based Trung Vuong Emergency Hospital uses IT to provide test results to patients, cutting waiting times for check-up registrations down to a maximum of 73 minutes.
Telemedicine has been applied by the Ha Noi-based Viet Duc hospital in its pilot satellite hospitals in Ha Noi’s Son Tay town, Hai Phong, Bac Ninh, Thanh Hoa, Nam Dinh and Phu Tho provinces. These hospitals have been able to carry out complicated surgery, helping to ease overloading at central hospitals.
The health ministry has promoted its computerisation programme to apply IT to manage patient records and reports to community health clinics, Minister Nguyen Thi Kim Tien said.
IT is one of the key ingredients in the Government’s plan to reduce overloading at State hospitals between 2013-20, and to eliminate the need for patients to share a bed by 2015, the ministry said.
Source: VNS