Chennai: Paper work involving patient data in hospitals is on its way out with increased penetration by technology.
Software firms handling the backend of the data are growing by the day and the sector is looking to better tech solutions in handling patient data, using them for insurance schemes and research. But the country is yet to realise the potential that electronic data storage has.
Purushotam K, senior director with the national association of software and services companies (Nasscom) says, “There is almost a 35 per cent outsourcing happening in healthcare today. And IT is having 14 per cent growth. The situation is to the benefit of the common man. There would be no more carrying of medical bills or prescription. And the doctor is able to trace the medical history of the patient at the click of a mouse.”
He adds, “Not only is it helpful for the patient, but it also helps in insurance and research.”
But experts point to the problem of data security.
Dr B. Muthukumaran, DGM of the institute of technology management and research, says, “The country is yet to wake up to the reality of electronic saving of data and its usage.
The outsourcing of data in US goes with the reason of not burdening doctors with entering the data and the presence of privacy laws keep the data in safe hands. In India, neither is there awareness of use of the data nor are there laws to keep them safe.”
He adds, “Major hospitals in the county do the billing electronically but not more than that. The data can be used for various purposes and centralisation of it will help the patients. A person on a visit to a different place, if he falls ill, can have his medical history seen by a doctor there if the data is centralised.”
