Medical records to be connected nationwide from July 1

People go to Da Nang Hospital for examination and treatment. (Photo: VNA)

Hanoi (VNS/VNA) –  Electronic medical record data will be connected
among hospitals and health facilities across the country from July 1.

Nguyen Truong Nam, deputy head of the Information and Technology Department,
under the Ministry of Health, said electronic medical records had been
built since 2019 by three units – the department, Viettel Telecom and the Vietnam
Posts and Telecommunications Group.

Currently, electronic medical records are not connected between hospitals and
in 50 provinces and cities nationwide, he said.

Nam said following the ministry’s requirements, the data must be connected
among the and health facilities from July.

Service providers were told to create accounts and provide
for each individual so they can access their electronic medical records and
update their data from July 1, Thanh Nien (Young
People) newspaper reported.

At first, electronic medical records would update data of each individual’s
outpatient examinations, he said.

The data was believed to be a basis for doctors to track the progress of a
patient’s health, he said.

When the electronic medical records are connected among health facilities in
the country from July 1, patients would not have to bring printed medical
records with them for follow-up examinations, he said.

Notably, the electronic medical records would include the COVID-19 vaccination
details of each individual, including injection time and post-injection
reactions to serve vaccine passport creation, he said.

Electronic medical records would, however, lack updated data for inpatient
examination and treatment. It was complex to update this kind of data because
of a lack of consensus among hospitals, he said.

Tran Quy Tuong, head of the department, said the s
would help people manage their health data for a lifetime.

The electronic medical record was not only a store of personal health data but
also support for the health sector to get complete and accurate health data of
people in the country, he said.

He said if managed well, the data could improve quality of life and reduce
treatment costs by diagnosing people with diseases earlier./.