The Singapore Family Physician

Back to issue Vol 2 No. 37 - Online Notifications and E-Services Platforms

OVERVIEW OF ON-LINE NOTIFICATIONS & E-SERVICES PLATFORMS

Goh Lee Gan
The Singapore Family Physician Vol 2 No 37 - Online Notifications and E-Services Platforms
8 - 12
1 April 2011
0377-5305
On-line notifications and e-Services platforms are changes brought about by the Internet and the information technology developments in the last 30 years. The sum total is the inexorable change to the way we look things up, be connected, and get things done. On-line notifications include notifications of infectious diseases, of industrial diseases and accidents, post-vaccination adverse reactions, and reporting of adverse events to health products. E-Services platforms are provided by Government agencies, other organizations and agencies both locally and worldwide. Doctors of Generation X, the so-called digital immigrants may find it challenging to get into the digital world. Yet it is not impossible. It involves a 3-step strategy -- being aware of the benefits of on-line and e-services platforms; working with other stakeholders on specific changes needed to make a successful change; and planning, testing, and implementing all aspects of the transition from one organizational structure and process to another. The Ministry of Health, the College of Family Physicians, Singapore, and early adopters of the new healthcare delivery system can work together to make the change less steep for doctors in need of assistance.