The Minister of Health and Population Khaled Abdel Ghaffar, the Minister of Communications and Information Technology Amr Talaat, and the Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research Ayman Ashour have held a meeting, via videoconference, to follow-up on the “Telemedicine” initiative, within the framework of the state’s strategy for digital transformation.
 
The meeting discussed the work progress in the first phase of the initiative, which includes 150 telemedicine units, which began functioning in September 2021, out of the targeted 300 units nationwide. A detailed presentation, in the presence of the three ministers, has been delivered on the mechanisms of implementing the initiative and the rate of medical examinations. This is in addition to reviewing the completion phases of the initiative.
 
Abdel Ghaffar underlined the significance of continuous follow-up and identified the challenges facing the work progress. He added that the cases have been presented to consultants and specialists to diagnose the disease 24/7 and anywhere, through state-of-the-art applications and technologies, in the presence of a physician assistant in the unit.
 
The Minister of Health and Population also reviewed the mechanisms of linking units to various hospitals of the Ministry of Health, university hospitals, and main treatment centers, to provide medical consultations to patients. He emphasized the significance of synergy and integration among the concerned ministries to complete the initiative.
 
Abdel Ghaffar highlighted the necessity of continuous review, evaluation of the efficiency of work in these units and determination of the visiting average. He called on officials to intensify training programs for the medical teams working in these units to improve their scientific capabilities in the field of diagnosis and treatment. He also underlined his keenness to provide all means of material support for the employees of “Telemedicine” units.
 
For his part, the ICT Minister highlighted that implementing the initiative to establish 300 telemedicine units is representing a model for close cooperation among the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT), Ministry of Health and Ministry of Higher Education. This cooperation contributes to adopting modern technology and using telemedicine applications to develop and provide medical and health services to citizens in remote areas. This is achieved through the technological linking of health units in these areas with central units in university hospitals, so that patients could receive the best medical services from senior consultants in university hospitals, without bearing the burden of travel and transportation.
 
Talaat explained that the initiative embodies the objectives of the state’s strategy aimed at activating ICT in the government work system to provide distinguished technological services to citizens nationwide, especially in remote and deprived areas.
 
The ICT Minister commended cooperation among the three ministries to maximize the benefits of the initiative, overcome the obstacles and ensure the sustainability of the initiative, and in the meanwhile planning for the second phase of the initiative.
 
In turn, Ashour indicated that the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research is participating in this project through the university hospital system, which includes 120 university hospitals. He pointed to the cooperation with the Ministry of Health and Population to develop the medical system in Egypt. This is in addition to cooperating with MCIT to automate and link university hospitals in a single digital system to achieve integration and digitize the provided health services.
 
Ashour highlighted that the initiative contributes to improving the quality of health care services, using technological solutions in treatment, and increasing opportunities for remote and deprived areas to obtain health services. The initiative aims to reduce patients’ burdens and avoid traveling to university hospitals or major hospitals affiliated with the Ministry of Health.
 
Ashour explained that the “Telemedicine” initiative is one of the most prominent presidential initiatives. The initiative aims to provide health consultations through telemedicine applications in coordination with the Ministry of Higher Education, Ministry of Health, and MCIT. It also contributed to diagnosing numerous cases since its launch.