IMPA offers medical professionals major leap forward using IT

Thursday, 18 September 2014 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

A future where you no longer will need to visit your doctor to have a consultation is rapidly approaching. It has begun with the initiative of JTech Computers in collaboration with the Independent Medical Practitioners Association of Sri Lanka (IMPA) to make technology readily available in the health sector.

The theme of the IMPA program held on 31 August at the OPA Auditorium at 275/75, Prof. Stanley Wijesundara Mawatha, Colombo 7 was ‘Information Technology for Medical Professionals’ and was sponsored by the UK-based computer company JTech Computers. At the program, JTech presented many compact budget devices that bring medical equipment to the palms of our hands, which include an ECG device the size of two USB thumb drives and an Intensive Monitor weighing only 26 grams. All the results can be transferred via a tablet PC or smart phone to a cloud server where it can be accessed or transmitted to a doctor via the internet. It was revealed at the program that the cost of moving from hard copy records to electronic records on tablet PCs and/or desktop computers will be inexpensive and can be very quick. The process of remote video consultation of patients and doctor can be implemented almost from now. There are means and systems that can transmit the basic tests that are done to the doctor before the video consultation. It is the vision of JTech to support the IMPA and the medical professionals in Sri Lanka to create a series of ‘patient-doctor centres’ to save on the time and cost of travelling to and from the doctor’s clinic. This would also avoid the long wait and the exposure to other sick patients in the doctor’s clinic. It will also enable a medical practitioner to see more patients.

Dr. Clive James, a Medical Information Officer at the Ministry of Health, explained how information technology has already kicked off in the administrative side of many State hospitals, which includes monitoring of facility status. This enables hospitals to rationally approach the Ministry of Finance with appropriate statistics to receive the necessary funds or equipment, which aims for an end result of a paperless system, but appreciates that a ‘paper less’ system would be more likely. JTech’s Founder and Chairman, Jay Fernando and Samuel Ruggles-Brise, JTech’s Marketing and PR Director, visited Sri Lank especially to address the program and offered their continuous support to the IMPA and the medical profession of Sri Lanka to achieve the advances in information technology. The program ended with the launch of the impressive new IMPA website (www.impa-lk.org) designed and produced by JTech. IMPA, which was established in 1929, is delighted to be associated with JTech Computers to add this new technology in healthcare to Sri Lanka.