Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on August 8 attended the inauguration of the Telehealth platform, which facilitates connections of all health centers nationwide, from district hospitals to those at the national level, and the launch of the National Technology Center for Covid-19 Prevention and Control.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh inaugurates the connection of the Telehealth Support Platform on the afternoon of August 8. Photo: Nhat Bac

PM Chinh said that the platform is one of the effective solutions to provide timely diagnosis and treatment support to help save more patients’ lives, reduce the burden on upper-level hospitals, and curb the transmission of coronavirus.

As the Covid-19 pandemic is spreading regardless of countries, religions, ages, and genders, using a uniformed technology platform across the country will enhance the effectiveness of the fight against the pandemic, Chinh stressed.

“The health and information and communication sectors need to continue researching and improving technologies for telemedicine, contributing to minimizing fatalities and stamping out the pandemic to again achieve sustainable development and prosperity,” Chinh said.

The government leader also took the occasion to hail efforts by medical workers in the front line of the combat against the Covid-19 pandemic, emphasizing the need to maintain connections among hospitals nationwide to improve treatment for patients.

At the event, PM Chinh witnessed doctors of Ho Chi Minh City’s Cho Ray Hospital consulting doctors of several other medical facilities in the city and Long An and Binh Duong provinces via the Telehealth Platform on treatment for Covid-19 patients in critical conditions.

PM Chinh and delegates witnessed doctors of Cho Ray Hospital connecting through the Telehealth system with the district level to consult and treat people infected with coronavirus, on the afternoon of August 8. Photo: Nhat Bac

He also listened to the opinions of doctors in localities throughout the country such as Dong Thap, Tien Giang, Dong Nai, Binh Phuoc, Lam Dong, Gia Lai, Dak Lak, Ba Ria-Vung Tau, Khanh Hoa, Phu Yen, Nghe An, and Lang Son on patient treatment.

For his part, Minister of Information and Communications Nguyen Manh Hung said that in the context of Covid-19 cases numbering in the hundreds of thousands, remote medical examination and treatment consultation plays an important role.

“All district health centers in Vietnam have been connected to central hospitals in one platform. Not many countries could achieve this. Live transmission on Telehealth in a network of national health centers is the industry’s dream for decades,” Minister Hung said.

He added that the national technological center for Covid-19 prevention has brought together about 1,000 people to work without pay and 18 digital platforms to attend all stages of the anti-pandemic protocol. Every day, the center serves 20 million people, with a view to serving 100 million people.

Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long said that in the near future, all health facilities nationwide will use electronic health books for vaccination campaigns and the issuance of “vaccine passports” to people.

“The pandemic spread regardless of boundaries, localities, countries, and ethnic groups. Therefore, using the technology platform across the country is the fastest and most effective way to fight against the coronavirus," Long noted.