DOH moves ahead with e-medical record plan

The plan, to be implemented between 2010 and 2012, is aimed at shortening patient waiting times at clinics, avoiding unneeded duplication of medical tests and prescriptions, and avoiding the unnecessary waste of medical resources.

The project will cost NT$6.04 billion, with the money provided from the budget for a project to stimulate the economy and expand public infrastructure.

There has been a legal basis for the establishment of an e-medical record system since 2005, but for a variety of reasons, including inadequate incentives and a lack of funds, the practice of computerizing patient records is not prevalent, according to the official. The DOH hopes that up to 400 hospitals, or 80 percent of the total in the country, as well as 14,000 clinics, or 70 percent of the total, will be using e-medical records by 2012.

Once the e-medical records system becomes popular, patients will be able to get their medical records anywhere in the country simply by providing their National Health Insurance IC cards.

The DOH also hopes the country's hospitals and medical institutions will agree to shift to such a national system for providing and sharing e-medical records, the official said. The e-medical records will include medical examination reports, imaging pictures, blood test results and prescription records, as well as results of examinations involving radiation, such as computer tomography scans and magnetic resonance imaging scans.

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