Urgently complete the spearhead of comprehensive digital transformation in the healthcare industry

Currently, the rapid development of science and technology along with new challenges in public health requires strong digital transformation in healthcare to meet new requirements.

The Ministry of Health is continuing to perfect legal documents, and at the same time issuing decisions and guiding documents, urging the implementation of e-Government construction, moving towards digital Government.

Leverage digital transformation

Resolution No. 17/NQ-CP dated March 7, 2019 of the Government on a number of key tasks and solutions for e-Government development in the 2019-2020 period, with a vision to 2025, has laid a solid foundation for a modern, transparent, people-centered administration. In particular, healthcare is identified as one of the key areas that need to prioritize digital transformation to improve public services, aiming at people's satisfaction. These are activities that pave the way for the construction of synchronous and interconnected healthcare information systems.

Decision No. 749/QD-TTg dated June 3, 2020 of the Prime Minister approving the "National Digital Transformation Program to 2025, with a vision to 2030" has specified the roadmap, goals and tasks of digital transformation for each sector and field. The Decision emphasizes key contents for healthcare such as: Telemedicine: Expanding online consultation, examination and consultation services to reduce the burden on upper-level health facilities and improve access to healthcare for people in remote areas; Electronic health records: Standardizing and deploying electronic health records for the entire population, creating a consistent personal health data platform.

Deputy Minister of Health Tran Van Thuan emphasized that the Ministry of Health identifies strengthening grassroots healthcare as the root, digital transformation as a lever, and periodic health check-ups for the whole population as a fundamental step.

"There is no longer a gap between high technology and basic healthcare, when artificial intelligence supports imaging diagnosis, when cardiovascular risk indicators, cancer, and chronic diseases are digitized and monitored on an electronic health record platform. All of these are no longer distant concepts, but are already present, serving, and protecting people's health, starting from the places closest to the people," Deputy Minister Tran Van Thuan affirmed.

Therefore, the health sector aims to build a smart health network at the provincial level, where each locality proactively creates its own digital health ecosystem with electronic health records, remote examination and consultation, early disease warning, and treatment support using artificial intelligence. This is the foundation for shifting from reactive health to predictive health, from manual management to data-based operations, for the health of the people.

In particular, the electronic health record system and electronic medical records standardize information, minimize errors due to manual data entry, and help managers monitor the entire medical examination and treatment process of people and the operations of medical facilities. Online reporting platforms and electronic document management systems help increase publicity and transparency in the industry's operations, thereby minimizing negativity and improving management efficiency.

301 medical facilities successfully implemented electronic medical records

According to Mr. Do Truong Duy - Director of the National Health Information Center, electronic medical records are one of the important pillars in the digital transformation roadmap of the health sector, contributing to improving the quality of medical examination and treatment, optimizing the management, storage and sharing of medical information, while ensuring the accuracy, connectivity and confidentiality of people's health data.

In particular, electronic medical records help to ensure transparency in all compliance with professional regulations. Electronic medical records will become a large data warehouse for research and evaluation of disease models, and a basis for units to serve procurement plans, bidding for drugs, medical supplies, etc.

To date, 301 medical facilities have announced the successful implementation of electronic medical records. This is a modest number compared to the set target. The main reason is that many medical facilities still face difficulties in terms of funding, technological infrastructure, human resources as well as lack of synchronous coordination between sectors and levels.

According to the Ministry of Health, the implementation of electronic medical records still faces many difficulties and challenges: from funding sources; information technology infrastructure, human resources, to system integration, technical standards and synchronous coordination between levels and sectors.

Implementing Directive No. 07 dated March 14, 2025 of the Prime Minister on promoting the implementation of the Project on developing applications of population data, identification and electronic authentication to serve national digital transformation in the period of 2022-2025, with a vision to 2030 in ministries, branches and localities in 2025 and the following years, in which the Ministry of Health is assigned to direct hospitals nationwide to complete the implementation of electronic medical records before September 30, 2025. The implementation of electronic medical records cannot be delayed any longer.

To overcome the difficulties, the Ministry of Health issued Circular 13 dated June 6, 2025 replacing Circular 46/2018. At the same time, the National Center for Health Information also issued Official Dispatch No. 365 guiding specific technical requirements for the implementation of electronic medical records, including technical guidance for the implementation of electronic medical records. These documents help standardize and simplify the process, supporting medical facilities with additional legal and technical basis to implement on schedule./.

Source: https://www.vietnamplus.vn/gap-rut-hoan-thanh-mui-nhon-chuyen-doi-so-toan-dien-trong-nganh-y-te-post1054059.vnp