The New Power Party (NPP) caucus yesterday proposed amendments to the Physicians Act (醫師法), saying that the regulations limit access to medical resources for elderly people, those with chronic illnesses and people needing long-term care.
NPP caucus whip Hsu Yung-ming (徐永明) said advances in technology offer online communications as an alternative to daily meetings and it thinks the government should to look into whether such technology could be used to facilitate long-range medical care.
Article 11 of the act states that doctors must not offer any treatment or prescriptions unless they are in attendance. In an emergency or in cases in remote locations, the local government should appoint a doctor to prescribe medication or offer assistance via telecommunications and authorize medical facilities to carry out any procedure.
Photo: CNA
The appointment of doctors and the communication method is to be designated by the central government, it says.
The NPP said the regulations needed to be updated, while the meaning of the meaning of “attendance” in the act needed to be examined.
Medical resources for Aborigines or people in rural areas are difficult to arrange, said NPP Legislator Kawlo Iyun Pacidal, an Amis, adding that technology could provide a solution if it was given the legal go-ahead.
The government should consider relaxing restrictions and allow doctors to extend their services via telecommunications and not have to be in attendance in every case, Pacidal said.
National Taiwan University’s Feipei Lai (賴飛羆) said that telecommunications were already used in other countries for such situations and the law needs to get with the times.
The Department of Computer Science and Information Engineering professor said that relaxing the rules would boost sales of products in the industry, while those in need would be able to obtain quality medical services.
National Taiwan University Hospital physician Kuo Lu-cheng (郭律成) said that in practice, doctors are unable to offer many suggestions to people with mobility problems, such as those relegated to bed, stroke patients, or those on respirators.
Instead of long-distance medical services, doctors could instead seek to reduce the number of patients visiting medical centers, especially those whose symptoms are not so serious, Kuo said.
Ministry of Health and Welfare Department of Medical Affairs official Lu Nien-tzu (呂念慈) said the agency was gathering information on long-distance medical services and was giving the matter due consideration.
The act encourages doctors to adhere to the “physically attend” regulation, Lu said, adding however that as long as a doctor is not providing treatment or giving a prescription, there are no limitations on advice they can give.
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