Health facility on the way to being paperless
− East La Penitence Health Centre paper-light on medical records
− Fosters smoother patient flow, management of patient load
DPI, Guyana, Thursday, November 21, 2019
The East La Penitence Health Centre is well on its way to becoming the first paperless health facility in Guyana. This is according to the Doctor-in-Charge of the centre, Dr. Keisha Chin, who noted that since a pilot project has been executed, the effects have taken root.
Referred to as the Electronic Medical Records, it is being facilitated through a cooperative initiative between the Ministry of Public Health and the Pan American Health Organisation’s country office. The pilot will see the establishment of a Government Health Information System (GHIS) which will be implanted at health facilities countrywide.
In her evaluation of the performance of the centre since they have begun storing medical records electronically, Dr. Chin said it has aided significantly in managing the patient flow and overall service delivery at the health centre.
“We are not paperless, but we are paper-light,” she remarked, adding that, “it’s going to take quite a few years for us to become paperless. When we implemented the Electronic Medical records at the East La Penitence Health Centre, using the Guyana Health Information System it mostly was [and continues to] focus on our outpatients and our chronic diseases patients.”
She noted that in cases of antenatal, post-natal and other Maternal and Child Health Services (MCHS), the use of clinic and vaccination cards are maintained since these documents are needed for other purposes, included travel, among others.
The Electronic Medical Records system captures patients’ pertinent information such as their demographics, medical history, clinical treatment data upon entry, transfer from or within a facility, thus eliminating the need for paper-based documentation
Dr. Chin testified that with the electronic records, “the patient flow is much easier, and one of the things we have noticed is that with the electronic medical records, the charts are always readily available… We [the health centre staff] can easily sign in to our profiles, get the patient’s record and everything that you would have done for that patient.”
In 2018, the Minister of Public Health, Hon. Volda Lawrence said this system is one which is to be replicated in coming years, noting that the New Amsterdam Hospital is one such facility that is on the way to becoming paperless.
The minister also indicated that there is a Pharmacy/Inventory Module included in the GHIS. “A Pharmacy/Inventory module is an integral component of the GHIS, directly linked to the Essential Drug/Medicine List and will be rolled out soon. This will aid doctors in the prescription of drugs, and ensure accountability.” Minister Lawrence explained.