Changing Record Keeping Practices In Nigerian Hospitals.
I have been feeling a little abnormal for sometime now and I want to be in the best share now that I have lots of community building roles on Steemit. So I decided to run a thorough medical checkup from BP to ECG and all that. It's always good to check yourself to be sure you are as free as a bird, it offers you the chance to nip any medical issue right in the bud. I would also advised that you always visit your doctor regularly and take standard tests even when you are not ill just to be sure that you are in the right shape medically.
So, I visited the hospital yesterday but I was in shocked at the state of our record keeping system in the health sector in Nigeria. Almost all hospitals still keep patients' medical record in paper files which are filed into shelves prone to rat attack, wear & tear from environmental factor and not secured as it can easily be stolen off the shelf by anyone who walks into the record room.
My first trouble started when I couldn't produce my medical card which I had forgotten in my bag in Uyo before I traveled. It took almost forever to manually search for my file one by one and still the lady got the wrong file with surname as James and a file code similar to mine.
The two hours it took to search for my file could mean death if it was an emergency. The second challenge was in getting my full medical history. In the last few months, I have moved a bit around Nigeria, I remember the last medical checkup I did was in Lagos and the doctors in Nasarawa could not get access to my records at Lagos, so I had to repeat most of the medical tests I had already taken in Lagos.
These issues made me critically examined the medical record keeping practices in Nigeria and I had to take some deep thoughts into how these problems can be addressed.
In the last few weeks I have developed special interest in how blockchain tech can help solve a lot of real life problems in Africa (and the world at large). The use of blockchain technology offers unique solutions to most problems currently experienced in our health sector. Even the world best health systems are typically fragmented - hospitals, community clinics, general practitioners, specialists, diagnostics clinics etc. Therefore, the issue I am discussing today is relevant to everyone not just the Nigerian health sector.
I have put down some ways in which blockchain can help offer solutions to these problems. But as this is a critical issue, I am making the post on @wafrica account to reach out to more people in Africa. So please check out the full post on @wafrica and do well to offers your input on this issue.
https://steemit.com/blockchain/@wafrica/the-need-for-blockchain-adoption-in-our-health-sector
BTW, I'm not ill. It was just normal routine medical checkup. So I'm totally fine. Thank you.
Photos from Pixabay
Glad to hear you're ok!
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Medic alert bracelet? Never heard of those.
Keeping people's medical records in paper files is the same problem the
Ghanaian citizens are facing. Sometimes it takes much time before your
medical records could be reached out for when you go to the hospital
for medical checkup. Initiation of the blockchain program is a way to
help minimise the dense of such problem. This will also help make the
work at the health sector a bit easier especially in time management.
By the way, i believe all is well now after the medical checkup. @lordjames
Good to see you back on here @lordjames and that all is well with you.
I was thinking of you the other day when investigating the Steembasicincome program.
Have you heard of it or gotten involved....it is a program that I am taking an interest in...the goal is to spread the wealth around STEEM to more people.
Thank you @taskmaster4450, I'll take a quick look at it now. I think I read where it was mentioned once but I didn't check up to see details about it. Thank you for bringing it to my knowledge.
I was scared when i called and you told me you were at the hospital but you later came back to tell me you went for your normal checkup.
You are so correct.
I will start doing normal check up not until i am down.
Happy Sunday to you
Well nigeria is gradually developing but we are moving at a very slow rate. Well I stay in the nations capital and most of the government hospitals in town now use computerized means to keep records I was shocked when my jnr brother told me about this, he was sick but all the records were taking in computer up to the last moment that's the hospitals pharmacy but this development can't speak for the whole nation if only 5 out of a 100+ hospitals are doing this then development hasn't started so your right when you say record keeping in nigeria is very outdated and the cause is the inability for the ministry of health and the federal government to do their work, no wonder most top government officers including the president attend to thier health issue outside the country
Using the blockchain would be one of the best means of supporting the hospitals but the question is are they ready to take it. Will they be ready to try it out?
We should continue to write post like this maybe one day we would have gotten enough ideas and suggestions that they will begin to hear our voice.
@lordjames this is virtually the same situation over here. A few weeks ago, I read and made a post about how FarmaTrust is using blockchain technology in pharmaceuticals. Hopefully, this can lead to adopting blockchain tech in the medical sector in general.
I want to speak with you. Find a way to contact me.
I've been thinking about this for a while and even though the blockchain is not the best thing currently for CMS like Steemit and such, it would be super amazing for the health sector. It is intended to be a record-keeping system, so I can't even begin to imagine how much benefit it would bring to this and other sectors like banking and even for taxes and government-level registries.
I'm all for it. Do you think it's possible for Nigeria to accept it anytime soon? I'd help you campaign for it, even though I'm Venezuelan.
The issue with government is that we usually believe that the government is a single person. No, the government is all of us. If we the populace begin utilizing blockchain tech in solving small issues, then soon the government will buy the idea.
It will like start with someone building this and selling to private clinics, then over time, government will adopt it. I'm glad African governments are giving an open arms to the technology. In a few days Uganda will host the biggest blockchain conference in Africa, that shows how much some government leaders are ready to adopt technologies in solving our most challenging issues.
Exactly, that's why we need to campaign for it so that the use of blockchain-related tools (and particularly the Steem blockchain) will become known in places where technology does barely even show its face.
I believe that the Blockchain will bring opportunities for equality to the whole world. It might sound like false preaching, but when we analyse it, its potential is enormous and we can only win through these actions.
Yeah its necessary to digitalize the medical records which are easy to access with fraction of seconds.
This comment has received a 0.42 % upvote from @speedvoter thanks to: @erode.
OMG sorry bro, I wish you quick recovery. Oh yes the healthy system in Nigeria is really poor. When I was in national hospital Abuja, I had to wait for hours just to get my record form, I was so angry. The Nigerian government should make the lives of her citizens more easily. Thanks for sharing, get well soon
Did you read this post to the end? You're wishing him quick recovery, how?
I'm not actually ill, just my body adjusting to the changes in weather and the check up was just routine to ensure that any avoidable future medical issues is nip right in the bud.
I understand what your frustrations would have mean at the hospital and that's why I mentioned this so we can all think towards improving on it.
Ok, that's good. We should always try to check our self once in a while.
Oh yes,i was really frustrating. Thanks for understanding
Hello! I find your post valuable for the wafrica community! Thanks for the great post! @wafrica is now following you! ALWAYs follow @wafrica and use the wafrica tag!