As the COVID-19 outbreak escalates in Taiwan, many large-scale hospitals have cut the number of inpatient consultations and halted provision of non-critical medical care. At the same time, patients have been avoiding in-person visits to refill prescriptions to reduce risks of infection. The National Health Insurance Administration (NHIA) announced that effective immediately, all hospitals may opt to offer teleconsultation and if necessary, allow patients to have someone pick up drug prescriptions on their behalf. Following the announcement, 4,012 health care providers have opted to provide teleconsultation services with the aim of ensuring the continued provision of care through “contactless” means.

NHIA Director General Lee Po-chang said that as the outbreak escalates, many people have been avoiding hospital visits, consequently leading to the disruption of drug regimens. Therefore, authorities have expanded institutions and patient groups that are eligible to provide and receive teleconsultation care.

Han Pei-hsuan, an official of the NHIA’s Medical Affairs Division, said that since the onset of the pandemic early last year, the Ministry of Health and Welfare’s Department of Medical Affairs has approved teleconsultation for patients undergoing home isolation, self-health management and home quarantine. Eligibility of teleconsultation was later expanded for the second time in February 2021 to include stable patients with chronic diseases.

Han said that telemedicine eligibility was further expanded on May 17 to include all patients and all health care providers including hospitals and clinics. Currently, around 283 hospitals and 3,729 clinics, or a total of 4,012 health care providers have opted to offer teleconsultation. The public is advised to contact their preferred health care providers via the Internet or phone to learn about how to access teleconsultation.

Department of Medical Affairs Director General Liu Yueh-ping said that the 4,012 health care providers have drastically reduced the instances of patient contact through the deployment of teleconsultation. However, due to a lack of experience, health care providers offering teleconsultation requires some time to optimize the process. Authorities urge for the understanding of the public and allow for some time for health care providers to improve their teleconsultation capabilities.

[2021-5-20/United Daily News]