A patient views her electronic medical records at Nam Cần Thơ Hospital. —VNA/VNS Photo Ánh Tuyết

CẦN THƠ — All 61 public and private hospitals and medical centres in the southern city Cần Thơ have implemented Electronic Medical Records (EMR) and connected to the national health shared database, according to the municipal Department of Health.

This is the first locality in the country to complete the implementation of EMR at all hospitals.

The deployment of EMR helps reduce the amount of paperwork, save time for medical staff and patients, increase transparency in medical examination and treatment management, and ensure accurate, timely and connected medical information, said Assoc Prof Hoàng Quốc Cường, director of the department.

It contributed to the connection and sharing of medical data with national systems, Cường said.

It marked a strategic step in the digital transformation process of the health sector and building a smart healthcare system, he said at a ceremony held on Tuesday to announce the deployment of EMR system in the city’s health system.

He proposed that investment from the State budget is needed to maintain the EMR system and build a shared database for the entire industry.

Nguyễn Thị Ngọc Điệp, Vice Chairwoman of the municipal People’s Committee, said: “It marks an important milestone in the digital transformation process of the local health sector, contributing to the effective implementation of the national health digital transformation strategy, building a digital government, a digital society and serving the people better.”

In the coming time, the city will continue to direct the health sector to effectively operate the EMR system, while exploiting big data and artificial intelligence to build a modern, friendly, people-centred health system, improving the quality of health care for people, she said.

She ordered the health sector to step up connecting and sharing medical data with national databases and related sectors as well as enhance the capacity to apply digital technology for medical staff in order to maintain the effectiveness of EMR and digital transformation. —VNS