IfG.CC -
Institute for eGovernment

Through the three-year tele-home project, Mercy - a network of hospitals and physician offices in Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri and Oklahoma - will target patients with the most chronic ailments, including diabetes, heart disease and respiratory disease. The grant monies will fund monitoring devices so patients can electronically transmit results from home via computer or telephone line directly to their physician.

“Any of our schools can use this service,” Jefferson-Lewis Board of Cooperative Educational Services Superintendent Jack J. Boak said. “Our students can use this to receive 15 or more credits in high school.”

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is accepting applications for loans to provide and expand broadband service in rural areas, Assistant to the Secretary for Rural Development Anne Hazlett announced Saturday.

“Modernizing the nation’s infrastructure to deliver high-speed internet service is essential in today’s global marketplace,” Hazlett said. “Broadband helps create jobs. It also helps rural areas offer the programs and services that strengthen economies and encourage growth. These loans will help maintain America’s economic competitiveness and connect rural communities to more opportunities.”

At March’s end, that project spread into Tennessee to fund electronic health record implementation as well as mobile and telehealth to rural providers across 10 counties wherein some 20,000 veterans are among the patient population.

The Power of Telemedicine discussion will encourage the exchange of information, innovations and success stories involving the varied uses of telemedicine. This information is essential as Rural Development examines the Distance Learning and Telemedicine program (DLT) and works to improve program delivery to telemedicine practitioners, patients, institutions and others affected by this cutting-edge technology. The discussion site can be accessed at the usda.gov website.

The United States Department of Agriculture has announced that it will fund 45 telemedicine projects to increase access to healthcare in rural areas.

Agriculture secretary Tom Vilsack made the announcement Monday, saying more than $34.7 million in grants will be issued through USDA's distance learning and telemedicine program to fund 106 projects: 45 in telemedicine and 61 focused on distance learning services.

The $30.2 million in USDA grants will fund 100 telemedicine and distance-learning programs in 34 states and one territory. Although USDA provided a full list of grantees, it was unclear how much of the money was going toward telemedicine rather than distance learning.

The Healthcare Ministry was forced last year to close 68 rural hospitals, making healthcare services scarce for rural Romanians who comprise 45 percent of the country’s population.

The Department of Veterans Affairs has released a comprehensive 400-page report that outlines its successes last year in the effort to improve veterans’ access to quality healthcare, including the implementation of an extensive telemedicine program. The report concludes that the use of telemedicine and telehealth has significantly improved veterans’ access to quality healthcare, and quality of life, by reducing the amount of time and travel needed to receive care.

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) 2012 Performance and Accountability Report, submitted by Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric Shinseki in November, discusses the Department’s achievements in improving healthcare and benefits service delivery to veterans. The report, which was addressed to President Barack Obama and Congressional leaders, indicated that in addition to increased access to care and reduced time spent on travel, other key benefits included considerable progress in the VA health system’s workflow and substantial financial savings.

Die Unternehmen der Informationswirtschaft und Telekommunikation (ITK) müssen nach Ansicht ihres Branchenverbandes Bitkom deutlich stärker in die Entwicklung der elektronischen Gesundheitskarte eingebunden werden, um das Projekt zu beschleunigen. Eine "Sparversion" der Karte dürfe es trotz des engen Zeitplans nicht geben.

In its report, the independent technology analyst firm found that video conferencing will have a significant impact on care outcomes and patient and practitioner satisfaction when properly integrated into healthcare systems and working practices. It will play a vital role in the development of e-health as a central tenet of healthcare.

Video communication has been the topic of fascination since the era of the cold war between the United States and the Soviet Russia. Earlier even a small glimpse of human form was considered an achievement. Today, modern technology has advanced to such an extent that even HD video is considered as primitive. This has been possible with the implementation of broadband networks all across the United States and other western countries that have enabled the west to rely on an infrastructure as a fundamental layer for the advancement of video conferencing solutions. The progress in video conferencing technology can be attributed to the three facets that support the industry, namely: device manufacturers, network solution providers and system integrators.

Nguyen Tuan Quang, chief engineer of the network, said this network would be the first online tool to help doctors digitise their statistics, manage patients' medical records, write out online prescriptions and exchange information with colleagues and drug stores.

Online prescriptions would help prevent errors such as incorrect drug names and problems due to bad handwriting, said Quang.

Patients and their doctors can now access their digital health records from a single platform.

A platform for creating, viewing, and sharing electronic health records has been rolled out in Hanoi, the capital city of Vietnam.

On 28 June, the city rolled out its EHR platform. According to a state media report, the platform enables relevant authorities, including doctors to access the health information of individual patients, who also have the right to opt in or out of sharing their records.

Hanoi has announced plans to implement an integrated electronic health record system, scheduled to begin in November.

Following the plan issued on November 6 by Hanoi People's Committee, the city will integrate electronic health records (EHRs) into the VNeID app, Vietnam's national e-identification platform managed by the Ministry of Public Security. The goal is to enable healthcare facilities to share patients' data, thereby enhancing the quality of medical services.

A forum was held at the National Innovation Centre (NIC) in Hanoi on October 29 with a focus on the application of medical technology to health care.

The event, part of the NIC opening ceremony and the Vietnam International Innovation Expo 2023 from October 28 to November 1, aims to provide a panoramic view of the health sector’s important aspects and introduce and connect potential partners in medical technology and digital transformation from hospitals, centres, research institutes, and medical universities in the region and the world.

Ho Chi Minh City’s healthcare sector is making significant progress in digital transformation, aiming to establish a smart healthcare system that enhances efficiency, accessibility and convenience for patients.

The adoption of digital technologies is streamlining medical processes, reducing administrative burdens and improving patient outcomes. This transformation aligns with global healthcare trends, ensuring that the city remains at the forefront of medical innovation.

Director of the Department of Medical Services Administration Luong Ngoc Khue told Viet Nam News that a national telemedicine service and a synchronous electronic medical records system would be set up in four years' time under the plans.

The telemedicine service was awaiting approval from the Minister of Health and the Prime Minister and the blueprints for the records system would be completed soon, he said.