FG tasked on standardization of ICT in healthcare services

The Society for Telemedicine and eHealth in Nigeria has called on the federal government to support its efforts in the development and enforcement of standards in the use of Information Communication Technology (ICT) to provide healthcare services.

President of the society and newly elected chair, National Mirror Committee and Technical committee ISO TC 215 Healthinformatics,Dr. Olajide Joseph Adebola made the call during the society’s 12th conference organised in collaboration with the Health Records Officers Registration Board in Abuja.

He said standards would ensure safety, security as well as privacy of consumers of healthcare services using health information communications technology.

“The essence of the workshop is to begin a process that will lead to standardization of health ICT, electronic health, and telemedicine digital health in Nigeria. Stakeholders have gathered here from government and private sectors academia and professional organisations to deliberate on how to develop standards for the sector,” he said.

He said it was aimed at enlightening participants on the development process of standards for health informatics and to build their capacity to start an adoption process for some of the standards in Nigeria.

He said the society was working towards improving telemedicine in the country, adding that a policy in the pipeline would ensure that each organization know its roles in the certification and recertification of electronic health services.

Director General of Standards Organization of Nigeria (SON) who was represented by Director, Standards Development of the organisation, Chinyere Egwuonwu, said the inauguration of the committee on health informatics would help the country participate actively in both national and international standardisation activities.

“It is also a means by which ‘Nigerian voice and position ‘ can be established in the area of standards development for health informatics. The scope of ISOTC 215 is limited to standardisation in the field of health informatics, to facilitate capture, interchange and use of health - related data, information, and knowledge to support and enable all aspects of the health system.”

He said the committee has developed 187 standards with 57 still under development, and that ISO TC has 61 member countries.