Reply To: Week 1 Topic 1

[Ching To Chung]

I think the problem of information systems where I am from is about actually getting people in the healthcare system to use them. Here in Hong Kong we have a new system paradigm which allows any hospitals and clinics to share and exchange patient information with their consent, which is very convenient because it means that any healthcare provider would be able to see a patient’s history after setting up the system. However, many healthcare providers are either 1. not trained to use it and think it’s cumbersome so they would rather not use it, or 2. are too old-fashioned and are not open-minded enough to integrate the system into their practice. As a result, I have to bring all the hard copies of my scans and medical documents whenever I want a second opinion from another oncologist, even if there is already this information system in place meant to replace hard copies! Sometimes we are too focused on developing the system itself, but forget that its users are a critical element in determining whether the system would be successful.