Prime Minister Tarique Rahman on Saturday directed the authorities to launch a pilot project in several districts as part of plans to introduce a National E-Health Platform to bring the country’s healthcare system under an integrated digital framework.

The issue was discussed at a meeting on an integrated information technology system for the health sector at the Prime Minister’s Office in Tejgaoni in the afternoon. Prime Minister Tarique Rahman chaired the meeting.

The meeting discussed the proposed structure and operating mechanism of the National E-Health Platform and its potential use in healthcare.

Initially, the platform will be piloted in several districts to assess its effectiveness, potential challenges, costs and feasibility. The government plans to gradually expand the platform after reviewing the experience and outcomes of the pilot project.

The prime minister directed the authorities to ensure effective use of information technology in healthcare.

He said the integrated system should be developed in a way that enables people to benefit from it easily and makes the process of accessing healthcare services simpler.

He stressed the need for secure storage of patients’ health information and ensuring that the necessary information can be readily accessed by relevant doctors and healthcare institutions when required.

The prime minister also stressed the need to ensure data security and privacy while developing the platform. At the same time, he said it should be user-friendly, cost-effective and sustainable in the long term.

He directed the authorities to properly evaluate the results of the pilot project before taking further steps.

Engineer Zakaria Swapan gave a presentation at the meeting outlining various aspects of the proposed National E-Health Platform.

Health and Family Welfare Minister Sardar Md Sakhawat Hossain, State Minister Dr MA Muhit, Prime Minister’s Special Assistants Dr SM Ziauddin Hyder and Dr Shakirul Islam Khan, Health Services Division Secretary Md Kamrul Zaman Chowdhury, Information and Communication Technology Secretary Md Mamunur Rashid and senior officials from the relevant departments and agencies attended the meeting.