KINGSTON, Jamaica. Tuesday, May 7, 2024: The Ministry of Health & Wellness is investing heavily in technology to bolster the patient experience at health facilities islandwide.
Already 104 public health facilities are benefiting from managed network services through Cable & Wireless, with some 85 facilities receiving enhanced Internet services and more than 40 health facilities having received new computers and installed networks.
“High-tech hospital systems are no longer just an announcement, Madam Speaker. This project has started and is continuing with an already significant impact on the ground, improving our response to patient care and patient satisfaction,” said Dr. the Hon. Christopher Tufton, the Minister of Health & Wellness, speaking in Parliament on Tuesday (May 7).
The Ministry is also progressing work on the digitisation of patient records to enable greater efficiency in the delivery of care to users of the public health system. In January, the Electronic Health Records (EHR) system went live at the May Pen Hospital in Clarendon, with other facilities to follow in the coming months.
“We have started to network and digitise our health system for better patient service. May Pen Hospital now has fully digitised patient records, while configuration and training activities are underway at the Spanish Town and St Ann’s Bay Hospitals in preparation for them also going live with the EHR system later this year,” Dr. Tufton told Parliament.
Digitisation of the health system is taking place as part of the Health Systems Strengthening Programme (HSSP) for the Prevention and Control of Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs).
The HSSP – supported by the Inter-American Development Bank and the European Union, together with financing from the Government of Jamaica – has as its objectives to improve the health of Jamaica’s population by strengthening comprehensive policies for the prevention of risk factors for NCDs.
It is also enabling the implementation of a chronic care model with improved access to strengthened and integrated primary and hospital services networks that provide more efficient and higher-quality care.