The Pathum Thani Provincial Administrative Organisation (PAO) aims to upgrade 70 tambon health-promotion hospitals (THPHs) and community health centres in the province once they are transferred to the local authority next year.
Pol Lt Gen Kamronwit Toopkrajang, chairman of Pathum Thani PAO, said Pathum Thani is ready to manage its own local public health services, instead of relying on the centralised service of the Public Health Ministry.
This shift in healthcare services comes after the cabinet's resolution mid-year to decentralise the administration of local health care units from the Public Health Ministry to local administrative authorities under the Interior Ministry.
His mission is to improve medical personnel and implement advanced technology to benefit patients, he said. "Within the next two years, all THPHs and community health centres will have medical X-ray machines. All 1.9 million people in Pathum Thani will have better health care services, with access to advanced technology and medical equipment," said Pol Lt Gen Kamronwit.
The need for technology
The PAO plans to improve the hospital information system of local health units with an easy-to-use solution known as "Alyssa". The solution was developed by Dr Nolnabhas Yaemsaard, 29, with the help of an Indian programming expert. The programme is currently used in at least three hospitals, she said.
Dr Nolnabhas said the system can help reduce paper processes and shorten the time spent recording patient data, while patients' treatment information can be shared among medical teams through a Cloud computing system.
Patients can download an app that can help them register for a service, book a doctor, read medical diagnoses and pay for medicine or a service. The app can even alert patients about their next appointment.
"Patients can access their own medical records. They can also postpone an appointment or change their doctor. The system will send their requests to the hospital and it will also manage every request, which can be completed within a few clicks," she said.
Another benefit is the app will allow other doctors who are not in charge of a case to see medical records online and continue treatment without disruption.
She said the idea to develop the Alyssa solution was based on her experience when she was an intern at a public hospital. She said she needed to fill in the medical data of each patient whenever they received treatment including diagnosis and medicine prescriptions among other things, making her realise the challenges which traditional hospital information management systems face.
Since she is interested in information technology, she wanted a programme that can enhance her work, and reduce time, errors and cost. After the programme was completed, it was trialled at PatRangsit Hospital where she worked four years ago.
"With Alyssa, each patient need spend no longer than 15 minutes at the hospital if there are no special requirements, such as waiting for a result of an X-ray or lab tests," said Dr Nolnabhas.
Dr Nolnabhas hoped the Alyssa system will help residents in Pathum Thani when they visit THPHs and community health centres. The investment in the Alyssa system is about 3 million baht, which is much lower compared to other hospital information management systems of the same par that can cost more than 10 million baht, she said.
"Our technology can help save investment and operation costs for hospitals," said Dr Nolnabhas. In addition to the technology, Pathum Thani PAO also has a model to showcase the success of personnel transfers managed by local authorities.
A successful model
Bueng Yitho Medical and Rehabilitation Centre is a successful prototype of the public health centre that was transferred to Bueng Yitho of Thanyaburi district in 2007.
The healthcare unit was upgraded from a public health centre to a medical and rehabilitation centre overseeing people in 28 sub-districts.
Bandhit Tungcharoendee, the director, said the centre has almost 50 personnel, including five doctors. It provides various types of services including dentistry, physical therapy and traditional Thai and Chinese medicine. The centre also has three health centres under its wing.
Rangsan Nanthakawong, mayor of Bueng Yitho municipality, said the success of transferring local medical healthcare to local authorities depends on the leader's visions. One of the benefits he foresaw was flexibility in management that can quickly serve the needs of local people, he said.
Dr Pongkasem Khaimook, deputy permanent secretary for public health, said 2,932 THPHs and community health centres have been transferred to PAOs in 40 provinces. No service disruptions have been reported.
The remaining 331 healthcare centres in nine provinces will follow suit. After the transfer is complete, the THPHs and community health centres will receive their budget directly from local administrative authorities to improve efficiency.
Dr Pongkasem said local authorities had been instructed to abide by regulations to make the transfer as successful as possible.
