Chinese medicine staff go hi-tech

Hundreds of practitioners of traditional Chinese medicine have taken their first steps towards being tech-savvy, with a computer course.

In a recent poll, about 80 per cent of 190 Chinese medicine practitioners said they supported the computerisation of clinic operations. The eHealth Consortium mailed survey forms in July.

Twenty-six per cent polled said they had computers in clinics, and 70 per cent of those without a computer said they would consider buying one in the coming year. Security of patient data, high running costs and the lack of technological support were among the concerns of those reluctant to computerise their operations.

On Monday, 200 practitioners took part in a six-hour beginner's workshop that the consortium organised. It was a follow-up session to a six-hour lecture last month that taught such basics as how to use a mouse, go online and send e-mails.

Luk Wing-wah, 64, said: 'It took me quite some time learning how to double-click with a mouse.' He recently digitised his operations. Prescriptions are now printed out and patient data is electronically stored.

'In the past, it was much more tedious to fetch health records of patients who did not return often.'

The city has more than 6,000 registered Chinese-medicine practitioners who cover 20 per cent of all outpatient services. About 10 per cent are enrolled in the elderly health care voucher scheme, which requires doctors to use a computer to access the government's central database.