Doctors' illegible handwriting has often been a bane of both patients as well as pharmacists. But a revamp of the medical record system will see hospitals and clinics in Shanghai perform "the whole process of prescription, like writing and revising patients' files on computer network."
The pilot "online prescription" program has been successful at Shanghai Yueyang Hospital which adopted the system early this year, the Shanghai Health Bureau announced Thursday.
The bureau plans to spread the system citywide because "it can avoid errors caused by hasty and careless handwriting, but the health-care authority did not specify on a timetable for the plan. In addition, it could be crucial in providing crucial evidence in medical disputes."
Medical records have been deemed as important, particularly for hospitals since a new regulation, effective from April 1, stipulates that it's the medical facility's duty to offer evidence to prove its innocence in medical disputes.
Doctor's scribblings - often leading to misunderstanding by patients or pharmacists' mistakes - have long been a source of many complaints, according to bureau officials.
In medical disputes especially, the careless handwritten corrections on medical records have been dismissed as bogus by patients, they added.
"Under the computer system, patients and pharmacists will no longer have to worry about understanding the doctor's handwriting," said Chen Jue, spokeswoman of Yueyang, adding that the online prescription supervision could keep a clear and authoritative record of the hospital's treatment and the patient's condition, hence protecting hospitals' interests in lawsuits.
(eastday.com July 26, 2002)
