22 provinces, autonomous regions and cities launch electronic medical records trials

The Ministry of Health issued the "Electronic Medical Record Trial Work Plan" on October 14 and decided that at least 50 hospitals in 22 provinces (regions, cities), including Beijing, and three pilot areas in Shanghai, Wuxi, Jiangsu, and Xiamen, Fujian Province. From the beginning of October this year, the electronic medical record pilot project was started. The trial period is 1 year.

The "Programme" requires that from January 2011 to October 2011, all pilot hospitals must establish and improve the electronic medical record application management system, work mode, operating mechanism, quality assessment and continuous improvement system, establish and improve medical quality based on electronic medical records and Medical security management model. The three pilot regions should strengthen the informatization construction of pilot hospitals in the region, and gradually establish an electronic medical record data center and information management system for safe sharing within the region.

According to the “Programme”, the electronic medical record pilot hospitals should be city-level and above three-tiered hospitals with districts, and have a good foundation of information management and experience in the implementation of electronic medical records. The Ministry of Health also encourages provinces (cities) such as Beijing, Jiangsu and Shandong Province to recommend one or two qualified county-level hospitals to participate in pilot projects.

In March of this year, the Ministry of Health issued the “Basic Regulations for Electronic Medical Records (Trial)” to provide for the establishment, use, preservation, and management of hospital electronic medical records. Among them, the safety of electronic medical records and how hospitals use the electronic medical records to ensure the legitimate rights and interests of the affected parties have caused public concern.