Taiwan should learn from other countries to advance telehealth services in the post-COVID-19 pandemic era, Minister of Health and Welfare Chiu Tai-yuan (邱泰源) said yesterday.
Chiu made the remark at a Taipei conference titled the “Current Challenges and Opportunities in Telehealth,” held by the National Health Research Institutes (NHRI) Forum, Taipei Medical University and National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University.
In his opening speech, Chiu discussed the concept of “social prescribing,” encouraging healthcare providers view patients through a professional medical lens and refer them to a range of person-centered non-clinical care services to support their health and well-being.
Photo: CNA
Since becoming the director of a public health center in 1988, Chiu said he began overseeing the operations of telehealth and hospice care.
His experience working with people in hospice care showed him the importance of person-centered care and that patients are connected to the community, he said.
Person-centered care services and telemedicine have played important roles during the COVID-19 pandemic around the world, and in the post-pandemic era, many countries are pushing to advance telehealth services, Chiu said.
While different countries have different opinions on quality, regulations, ethics and privacy regarding telehealth services, it has become a common challenge for many healthcare systems around the world, he said.
Taiwan should continue to learn from and communicate with other countries to advances its telehealth services, he said.
In the post-COVID-19 era, telemedicine still faces challenges, including healthcare quality monitoring, patient privacy safety, regulations and regulatory reviews, but after some experience, the scope of telemedicine was expanded in July, NHRI Forum vice chairman Wayne Sheu (許惠恒) said.
Taipei Medical University Board of Trustees chairman Chen Ray-jade (陳瑞杰) said telemedicine did not disappear after COVID-19 ended, but transformed into telehealth, and is shifting its focus from acute care to chronic care services.
The focus of telehealth is on individuals or families, so if there is a comprehensive telehealth system, people can still receive healthcare at home when a disaster or pandemic occurs, which is an embodiment of a “resilient health system,” Chen said.
However, telemedicine in the post-COVID-19 era faces four main challenges: regulations, payment systems, technology and personal information security, he said.
The conference was held for people from the private and government sectors, academics and healthcare providers to discuss solutions, he said.
Telehealth can also be extended beyond medical treatment, to health education, holistic healthcare and weight management, or even allow people to participate in clinical trials at home, he added.
Additional reporting by CNA
Taiwan would benefit from more integrated military strategies and deployments if the US and its allies treat the East China Sea, the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea as a “single theater of operations,” a Taiwanese military expert said yesterday. Shen Ming-shih (沈明室), a researcher at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said he made the assessment after two Japanese military experts warned of emerging threats from China based on a drill conducted this month by the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) Eastern Theater Command. Japan Institute for National Fundamentals researcher Maki Nakagawa said the drill differed from the
‘WORSE THAN COMMUNISTS’: President William Lai has cracked down on his political enemies and has attempted to exterminate all opposition forces, the chairman said The legislature would motion for a presidential recall after May 20, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday at a protest themed “against green communists and dictatorship” in Taipei. Taiwan is supposed to be a peaceful homeland where people are united, but President William Lai (賴清德) has been polarizing and tearing apart society since his inauguration, Chu said. Lai must show his commitment to his job, otherwise a referendum could be initiated to recall him, he said. Democracy means the rule of the people, not the rule of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), but Lai has failed to fulfill his
OFF-TARGET: More than 30,000 participants were expected to take part in the Games next month, but only 6,550 foreign and 19,400 Taiwanese athletes have registered Taipei city councilors yesterday blasted the organizers of next month’s World Masters Games over sudden timetable and venue changes, which they said have caused thousands of participants to back out of the international sporting event, among other organizational issues. They also cited visa delays and political interference by China as reasons many foreign athletes are requesting refunds for the event, to be held from May 17 to 30. Jointly organized by the Taipei and New Taipei City governments, the games have been rocked by numerous controversies since preparations began in 2020. Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) said yesterday that new measures by
A rally held by opposition parties yesterday demonstrates that Taiwan is a democratic country, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday, adding that if opposition parties really want to fight dictatorship, they should fight it on Tiananmen Square in Beijing. The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) held a protest with the theme “against green communists and dictatorship,” and was joined by the Taiwan People’s Party. Lai said the opposition parties are against what they called the “green communists,” but do not fight against the “Chinese communists,” adding that if they really want to fight dictatorship, they should go to the right place and face