Taipei, Dec. 25 (CNA) Taiwan’s integration of the nation’s digital well being information system with immigration information enabled its focused response to COVID-19, the Worldwide Hospital Federation (IHF) stated in a report that used Taiwan as a case examine.
The report supplied insights into how hospitals can embrace new methods of delivering well being care whereas responding to the evolving coronavirus pandemic, and Taiwan’s case was highlighted to point out the significance of data sharing and entry in attaining outcomes.
The technique adopted by Taiwan’s Nationwide Well being Insurance coverage Administration (NHIA) to share data via MediCloud, its cloud databank, to regulate the pandemic was a key consider Taiwan’s success in capping COVID-19 outbreaks and deaths, the IHF stated.
“Though the system was not initially designed to cease a pandemic, it was nimble sufficient to be reoriented towards one,” stated the report, revealed by the IHF Past COVID-19 Process Power on Dec. 17.
To assist the system determine potential instances, the NHIA put in COVID-19 threat indicators within the MediCloud system associated to journey footprints, occupations, contacts and clusters.
By linking MediCloud, which offers well being care suppliers and sufferers with real-time entry to well being information, with border entry and exit information uploaded from the Nationwide Immigration Company, the NHIA created a centralized, real-time alert system for potential COVID-19 instances, in accordance with the report.
“These automated system alerts enable well being care suppliers to acquire sufferers’ journey historical past, high-risk occupation, contact historical past, and clustering at mass gatherings in real-time, enabling a extra environment friendly triage and correct analysis of COVID-19,” the report stated.
“This enhancement to the MediCloud system has been very important to Taiwan’s precision testing technique, which is environment friendly in testing a small however essential variety of individuals, as a substitute of mass testing.”
NHIA Director-Basic Lee Po-chang (李伯璋) welcomed recognition of Taiwan’s technique as an honor for all well being care staff in Taiwan.
The institution of the IHF Past COVID-19 Process Power got here at a time when the world was within the world well being disaster attributable to the COVID-19 pandemic, in accordance with the IHF, which is headquartered in Geneva.
The pandemic has accelerated innovation inside well being care at an unprecedented tempo, towards more practical and agile fashions of care — a metamorphosis a lot wanted in lots of well being care programs globally — the IHF stated, and the duty power was set as much as assist members reap these advantages.