Cetic.br discusses advances and challenges in the use of information and communication technologies in health

Indicators and annual publication of the ICT Health 2015 were launched and debated by specialists

To mark the release of the 3rd edition of the ICT Health Survey, the Regional Center for Studies in the Development of the Information Society (Cetic.br) promoted, this Monday (28), a presentation of unprecedented data, the launch of the annual publication with analyses and articles, and a debate with experts about the study's results. The meeting took place during the XV Brazilian Congress of Health Informatics – CBIS 2016, in the city of Goiânia (Goiás), discussing the advances and challenges for the adoption of telehealth and telemedicine services, electronic patient records, the training of IT professionals in health, the ICT infrastructure of hospitals, and other topics. 

The presentation was conducted by Alexandre Barbosa, manager of Cetic.br. He explained that ICT Health aims to understand and indicate how technologies are being used in health establishments and by professionals in the area. “By following the methodology of international organizations, the survey allows not only to focus on our reality, the impacts of the policies we have underway, and the obstacles that need to be overcome but also to verify the progress Brazil is making towards internationally agreed goals,” Barbosa explained. 

Among the results commented on by the manager of Cetic.br is the proportion of health establishments that have an IT department: only one quarter has a dedicated sector, while only 6% of connected establishments have a health professional on their IT team. He emphasizes the challenge of bringing information and communication technologies to public health establishments: 74% of them have Internet access, whereas among private establishments, the proportion is 99%. Regarding the electronic storage of patient information, Alexandre stated that "only 10% of private public health establishments have patient records solely in electronic format. The vast majority are in transition, part of the record in paper format and part in electronic format." 

Debate

The debate on the topic "The adoption of ICT in the health sector: balance of progress and next steps for public policies in Brazil" was mediated by Heimar Marin (Hospital Sírio Libanês/ Universidade Federal de São Paulo), who encouraged other participants to comment on the challenges posed by the ICT Health Survey for education, assistance, and governance of ICT in health. 

Antonio Lira (Hospital Sírio Libanês) reinforced that the study confirms still very modest improvement and drew a parallel between the situation in public and private establishments. Despite having superior ICT infrastructure compared to public establishments, Lira emphasized that telehealth services are nonexistent in the private area. “These activities are linked to a network of care, of assistance. In this regard, private institutions are isolated, and the telehealth movement happens only through public interfaces.” 

Luiz Ary Messina (University Telemedicine Network/National Research and Education Network) added that the telemedicine network must also consider connectivity. “When we observe a leap among health establishments with 100 Mbps Internet, we must remember that this speed comes from a commercial contract, it is fluctuating, and for the entire institution. It is different from what the National Research and Education Network (RNP) offers for higher education and research entities. And the quality of the connection interferes with telehealth actions, such as distance education and teleconferences.” 

During the debate, the experience of the National Supplementary Health Agency (ANS) was addressed by Celina Oliveira, who analyzed the disparities in ICT use between inpatient and non-inpatient establishments. Still on the issue of Internet connection, she stated that the ANS is defining standards for the use of ICT in services, which should be adopted, in principle, by all Brazilian health establishments. “From the survey's indicators on Internet access, we realize that we have a challenge that goes beyond connectivity. The ICT Health Survey provides important data for us to think about the policies we are developing.” 

The training of IT professionals in health was commented on by Beatriz Leão (Brazilian Society of Health Informatics). “Only 6% of establishments have health professionals in IT areas. Private hospitals of excellence, which are qualifying this sample, have a duty to help, to invest in a mass training project,” she advocated. For Beatriz, society should identify and demand more training courses in the area. “We have to join hands, organize ourselves so that we can train the largest number of people. And notice, in the next editions of the ICT Health, a growth of this indicator,” she emphasized. The importance of data security and privacy for patients, from the electronic record, was also debated by the participants. 

About the study

In its 3rd edition, the ICT Health interviewed 2,252 managers of health establishments across the entire national territory, as well as 1,242 doctors and 2,197 nurses associated with these establishments. Data collection took place between November 2015 and June 2016. 

Access the survey in full: https://cetic.br/pesquisa/saude/indicadores, and compare the evolution of indicators through data visualization: https://data.cetic.br/cetic/explore?idPesquisa=TIC_SAUDE. Also read the articles and analyses in the publications, available for download at: https://cetic.br/pesquisa/saude/publicacoes.

This content was automatically translated with the support of artificial intelligence.