Guideline blends internet, medicine to assist patients

By:Xinhua
update:April 18,2018

April 18, 2018 -- China will continue integrating healthcare services with the Internet Plus Initiative to improve the quality and efficiency of the sector under a new guideline approved by the State Council, senior officials said on Monday.

Management of healthcare services should be improved by optimizing resource distribution and innovative management models with higher efficiency and lower costs, Zeng Yixin, deputy head of the National Health Commission, said at a policy briefing hosted by the State Council Information Office.

The guideline on the promotion of integrating healthcare with the internet was approved at a State Council executive meeting on Thursday, which was presided over by Premier Li Keqiang. It's the latest move by the central government to integrate traditional industries with internet technologies.

According to the guideline, a service system will be established to promote integration in areas such as public health, privately contracted doctors, medical supplies and medical insurance reimbursement settlement, Zeng said.

Meanwhile, supportive policies will be introduced to boost sharing of medical information and infrastructure upgrades for hospitals, along with measures to ensure the security of personal medical information and the quality of healthcare services, he said.

However, problems remain for some hospitals, where patients cannot get punctual treatment and still have unpleasant experiences when seeing doctors.

Jiao Yahui, deputy director of the department of health policies and management under the commission, said medical reforms should be deepened and more internet-based procedures introduced to solve the problem.

Many hospitals have developed their own applications, through which patients can register for an appointment online, Jiao said. Meanwhile, other platforms are also being used to pool resources from different hospitals to make appointments easily for patients, she said.

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