VietNamNet Bridge – The capital city will start putting in place an individual medical records system for locals next month, Nguyen Trong Khoa, deputy director of the Department of Medical Examination and Treatment Department, said.

People are given check up in a clinic in Ha Noi.

Since earlier this year, the establishment of individual medical records is being implemented in the northern provinces of Phu Tho and Bac Ninh, he said.

“The individual medical record has each person’s detailed healthcare information, which is stored in the national digital medical record system,” Khoa said at a press conference on Tuesday.

The medical records include personal information and health and disease history, he said.

Maintaining an individual medical records system will encourage people to go for periodic checkups at hospitals and clinics and help doctors provide faster and more accurate diagnosis and treatment, which will reduce time and cost for patients.

The system will also encourage people to go for health checkups at clinics at the grassroots level which will limit disease outbreaks and reduce overload at central-level hospitals.

“Early diagnosis of diseases will reduce treatment expenses for medical insurance,” Pham Luong Son, deputy general director of Viet Nam Social Insurance, said.

“Besides, proper management of patients’ information will also help to efficiently manage medical expenses and limit frauds related to the medical insurance fund,” Son said.

Earlier this month, Nguyen Duc Chung, chairman of Ha Noi People’s Committee, said by June 30, the city will develop and install software to connect its 42 health centres at the grassroots level.

The capital already has a resident database that is updated regularly, so they will only need to add a field on health information into the system, Chung said.

“In the future, wherever people go in the city for a checkup, the information will be updated in the system.”

Explaining how it will work, Chung said “Each person will have his/her own code number. The health records will be confidential and only doctors will have access to it and that too with the patient’s permission.” 

VNS