Children's hospital reaches patients online

Since the launch of online medical services on February 29, Shanghai Children’s Hospital has offered 387 consultations and given 99 prescriptions, said the hospital, the first children’s hospital to receive an Internet hospital license.

The hospital is now offering online registration, consultation, prescriptions for existing patients, pharmacist’s prescription checks and drug delivery. 

Such services are a powerful support during the coronavirus epidemic, as many patients now find it difficult to make in-person visits.

The hospital's first online service was to a father who had taken his child to the hospital for early breast development last November. The patient in Zhejiang Province has missed a scheduled second visit due to traffic controls imposed amid the epidemic.

The father logged onto the hospital's Internet-based services on February 29 and had the patient’s identity verified online. Dr Li Bin gave the consultation and decided that the patient was eligible for online prescription.

The medicines were delivered to the patient after a pharmacist’s online evaluation in just one afternoon.

“The whole process was easy and convenient,” said the father.

The hospital has also designed combined online and offline services for clinical diagnosis and treatment and online followup consultations. Children being discharged with pneumonia and critical condition are receiving online checks to reduce their hospital visits, said Yu Guangjun, the hospital's president.

“We are also closely cooperating with the medical insurance bureau to offer more convenient medical bill payment,” Yu added.