Promoting digital transformation in medical examination and treatment activities

On the morning of December 2, in Vinh City (Nghe An), the Ministry of Health organized the 2022 Healthcare Digital Transformation Conference in the Northern region. Attending the conference were Prof. Dr. Tran Van Thuan - Deputy Minister of Health. On the side of Nghe An province, there were comrades: Bui Dinh Long - Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee; Associate Professor Dr. Duong Dinh Chinh - Director of the Department of Health.

Speaking at the opening of the conference, Prof. Dr. Tran Van Thuan said that the application of information technology and digital transformation in healthcare has made significant contributions to controlling the epidemic as well as developing socio-economic activities.

In particular, in recent times, units and localities have made efforts and prioritized many resources to implement digital transformation in healthcare. Up to now, digital transformation in healthcare has achieved positive results in terms of changing awareness; in terms of institutional creation; in terms of developing digital infrastructure; in terms of developing digital platforms; and in terms of network information security and cybersecurity.

Delegates attending the conference. Photo: Tien Hung

Deputy Minister Tran Van Thuan highly appreciated the efforts, determination and achievements of units and localities in the digital transformation of healthcare, contributing significantly to the national digital transformation.

However, Deputy Minister Tran Van Thuan also pointed out a number of shortcomings, difficulties and problems that need to be resolved such as: Many localities and units have not really paid attention to promoting the application of information technology and digital transformation in healthcare; Human resources and information technology infrastructure in units are still lacking and weak due to lack of financial mechanisms and investment resources for digital transformation in healthcare; The number of medical examination and treatment facilities implementing telemedicine is becoming more and more popular, however, the implementation effectiveness is still unclear due to problems with financial mechanisms and related legal regulations on medical examination and treatment.

Leaders of Nghe An province speak at the conference. Photo: Tien Hung

With these difficulties, Deputy Minister Tran Van Thuan requested specialized units under the Ministry of Health, localities and units to focus on perfecting institutions and policies, including developing and submitting to the Government a draft Decree regulating the Management of Medical Data; Urgently develop a comprehensive digital transformation plan, closely following the guiding documents, programs and projects of the Ministry of Health; Strengthen communication about the benefits of digital transformation in health care so that agencies, units, people and businesses clearly understand the benefits and effectiveness of digital transformation in health care. Promote cashless payments, use of chip-embedded citizen identification cards when examining and treating health insurance at medical facilities.

At the conference, delegates also listened to a number of presentations, such as digital transformation in medical examination and treatment management and administration at Vinh City General Hospital...