Information and
Communication Technology

Note Re: Information and Communication Technology [ICT]

  • Currently, S4P ICT application is focused on e-Health and is managed by a separate division.
  • Principles, architecture and functional module development methodologies used in the healthcare sector are transferable for application in other sectors.
  • S4P can provide 360 ICT service to healthcare institutions, network of institutions and jurisdiction-wide systems (municipal, provincial, and federal)

Guiding Principles

  • ICT approach is guided by 11 basic principles:
    1. Patient-centric – Systems and protocols designed around the well-being of patients.
    2. E³ – ICT is to be:
      • Effective – Achieves the intended healthcare goal(s) of the patient
      • Efficient – Eliminates redundancies and multi-tiered documentations, saves time for healthcare providers and increased capacity.
      • Empowering – Both healthcare users and providers are empowered by accurate, timely and relevant information for better decision-making.
    3. Patient Safety – Quality in care and capture quantitatively for CIP and risk mitigation.
    4. Optimizing IT systems for:
      • Improving patient management – Reduction in diagnostic and treatment errors.
      • Improving physician –to-patient time ratio
      • Automation – Data mining, required trend analysis, report generation, and metric for performance assessments.
      • Healthcare network communication – vertical and horizontal information sharing for public health crisis management, and others.
      • Rural and remote communities access to healthcare – Telemedicine, ‘Health Booths’ linked to hospital and physicians and timelines
      • Establishing and maintaining contact without visiting healthcare providers in person – Leveraging portals and communication technology
      • Empowering patients by providing efficient and cost effective access to their own medical records.
    5. Holistic Approach to ICT architecture – A tripartite relationship between patients, doctors/nurses, and technology.
    6. ICT architectures in providers such as
      • General practitioner – family physician
      • Specialists
      • Nurses
      • Triage nurses
      • Healthcare technologist – imaging, other static/dynamic images
      • Support staff
      • Administration
      • Hospitals
      • Community clinics and specialized clinical centers
      • Labs – publish health, hospital based and public health
    7. ICT/ e-Health systems to fully integrate all of the functionaries listed above.
    8. Over-the-Horizon approach – Planning for the future.
    9. Patient privacy and confidentiality – Authorized levels of access and access log reports.
    10. Comprehensive Electronic Health Records {HER} – Up-dated, user friendly fully integrated into institutions’ processes and protocols.
    11. Scalability – ICT system to be fully scalable and dynamic as operating/ demand environment changes

Key Design Capabilities and Features

  • Facilitates ERP in assessment, design, development, implementation and surveillance of ICT
  • Needs assessment
  • Architecture design
  • Factors in stakeholder expectations from the system
  • ICT can be customized for
    1. Acute care
    2. Community hospitals
    3. Large complex healthcare facilities
    4. Rehab hospitals
    5. Mental health possibilities
  • Chronic disease management and disease – Specific registries
  • Compliance with standard – Provincial, federal, and international where deemed necessary
  • Risk management
  • End-to-End scheduling of all direct healthcare providers, support staff and administration
  • Compliance with regulations – Industry, provincial, and federal
  • Provide function – Specific and on-going training
  • Data resource governance and management systems
  • Date Quality – Cleaning and integrating

Competitive Advantages

  • Customized to technical and operational specifications
  • Cost competitive
  • On-site service (Staff in urban centers who can also service remote sites)
  • Comprehensive and on-going training
  • Leading-edge technology and on-going innovations
  • End-to-End (360) service
  • Use of local resources