HEALTH workers at Gwembe District Hospital in Southern Province will no longer have to rely on traditional pen and paper for recording the details of patients.
With the launch of the new Digital Health System, patients’ information will now be digitally logged.
Patients have also been blessed with ease access to health care services such as medical advice and consultation without having to travel long and arduous distances.
Technology and Science Minister Felix Mutati and his counterpart from the health ministry Elijah Muchima launched the Digital Health System project at Gwembe District Hospital yesterday.
The two ministries have since started dispatching digital health systems in hospitals across the country to digitize health care services and safeguard the supply of medicines.
Health care services will now be available to a wide range of people across the country.
Speaking when he launched the Digital Health Systems Project at Gwembe District Hospital in Munyumbwe area of Gwembe District in Southern Province, Mutati said his Ministry together with the Ministry of Health put heads together to track medicines across the country using Artificial Intelligence (AI).
Pilferage of medicines or drugs will soon come to an end as the digital space has been deployed to monitor the supply chain as told by the two ministers.
“Imagine the doctor or nurse receiving instructions and the power goes off. We wanted it to be as far as possible from the line of rail. A place where two ministers are forced to come because they want to know what’s happening. All the hospitals in Southern Province will come and learn from you on how Smart Care works.”
“The nurses at the hospital are given extra lessons on how it is to work. Technology is about making the lives of our people simple we minimise the cost of delivery care. Through the Track and Trace programme, medicines are being tracked using latest technology from the point of procurement to consumption by patients,” said Mutati.
And Health Minister Elijah Muchima urged the Technology and Science Ministry to partner with his ministry to include technology courses in the training of health workers noting that technology was an integral part of health care delivery.
“Enhancing health care delivery is on our mission to provide quality health care services.
This is a more than just digital tool as it represents our shared vision for a smarter health care system.”
“Nurses need to know how to utilise gadgets in their daily work, this is why there’s rampant theft of medicines in our health facilities which only deprive Zambians of the drugs they need for their health,” noted Muchima.
Government is also processing funds to equip all health facilities with solar energy as government wants all health facilities to have energy throughout the day without disrupting operations.
Zambia Information and Communication Technology Authority (ZICTA) Director General Choolwe Nalubamba revealed that two communication towers will be constructed in Gwembe District soon to give various institutions and residents connectivity.
By Catherine Pule
Kalemba, September 6, 2024
