DUBAI // The Ministry of Health has begun using new information technology to improve the quality of health care in the Emirates.
The new system will allow health officials to build national disease registries, starting with the first national cancer registry, among other uses.
The National Integrated Health Information Reporting and Analysis System will connect all healthcare providers, and compile statistical information that will allow the ministry to allocate resources where they are most needed.
"We have implemented Microsoft's Amalga programme in Khalifa Hospital in Ajman, as well as a healthcare centre in Ajman," said Dr Huda al Suwaidi, director of the Ministry's statistics and health research centre. "It is a project that we are going to implement across all the hospitals and primary healthcare facilities under the Ministry of Health."
Dr al Suwaidi said the system will also allow the Ministry of Health to compare hospitals and place benchmarks on their performance.
"If something stands out significantly, for example, the waiting time in an emergency room or there is a spike in diseases, we can take action based on the data," she said.
The statistics can also be used to initiate various types of research, she said.
balqabbani@thenational.ae
