Illustrative image (Source: baochinhphu.vn)
Hanoi (VNA) - The Ministry of Health has asked 122 hospitals tointerlink their medical exam results with each other in an effort to eliminateredundant examinations.
The ministry said that 38 central-level hospitals would implement the sharingsystem from July 1, while others would have the system operational as ofJanuary 1, 2018.
Luong Ngoc Khue, director general of the Medical Examination and TreatmentDepartment said the move would not only save time and money for patients butalso would help standardise examination quality among hospitals.
According to Khue, the number of medical examinations was reported to rise 10percent per year from 2011-16.
Deputy Minister Nguyen Viet Tien said that a hospital should only conduct amedical test if it is really necessary.
Doctors have recently found that the excess of medical tests occurred partlybecause doctors did not trust results from other hospitals, he said.
Another reason was that doctors often do not carefully consider patients’medical files before asking them to undergo medical examinations, he said.
The situation must be fixed soon, he added.
In addition, medical equipment is often funded by socialisation sources.Investors want more examinations conducted so that more profits can be gained.
Tien said directors of hospitals must think carefully before selecting medicalequipment with suitable prices from investors.
Khue said that to prepare for the interlink system, the ministry plans toapprove a draft regulation with criteria to assess the quality of hospitallaboratories this month.
According to the draft, laboratories will be rated at five levels. A healthclinic will be suspended from operation if rated at the lowest level and remainclosed until it totally fixes its problems.
Statistics from the ministry show the country now has 38 central-levelhospitals under the health ministry, 492 provincial-level hospitals, 629district-level hospitals and over 30,000 private health clinics.-VNA
