According to figures in the Vietnam IT Spending BlackBook for the first quarter of 2015, prepared by market researcher the International Data Corporation (IDC), information technology (IT) expenditure in Vietnam’s health sector in 2014 stood at $18 million, a 12.5 per cent increase compared to 2013.

Hardware saw the highest spending, accounting for 69.1 per cent, followed by IT services with 20.5 per cent and software 10.3 per cent.

Spending was focused on hospitals in Vietnam’s north, such as the National Hospital of Obstetrics and Gynecology, the Vietnam National Hospital of Pediatrics, and Ha Tinh General Hospital, under Instruction No. 02/CT-BYT dated February 25, 2009 from the Ministry of Health (MoH) on accelerating the application and development of IT in the health sector. Certain hospitals in the south, such as in Long An and Tra Vinh, promoted investment in IT applications in order to improve the management of hospital operations. Private hospitals also invested heavily in IT solutions to improve management.

According to the Vietnam C-Suite Barometer Survey 2015 from IDC, which interviewed senior executives (Level C) on “the role of IT in medical institutions in Vietnam from 2015 to 2016”, 50 per cent of respondents said IT spending increases productivity and optimizes business processes, while 17 per cent said that IT helps create opportunities and new market penetration.

The survey also showed that big data and analytics was the key technology receiving the greatest concern from hospital in enhancing their competitive position in 2015-2016, as answered by 50 per cent of respondents, followed by the Internet of Things and Mobility and Security/ Risk Management/ Data Governance.

With MoH having a policy of boosting the use of IT in hospitals in 2015, IDC forecasts IT spending in Vietnam’s health sector will reach $20 million this year, representing growth of 11.1 per cent.

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VET