e-Health Card likely to launch by June to strengthen healthcare system: Health minister
The minister said the e-Health Card will allow physicians to access essential patient information regardless of whether treatment is received in rural or urban facilities, enabling more accurate diagnosis and care
Health and Family Welfare Minister Sardar Md Sakhawat Hossain today (11 March) said the government expects to launch the national e-Health Card by June this year to make the country's healthcare system more integrated and effective.
Sakhawat said Tarique Rahman has directed authorities to implement the initiative as a priority to strengthen public service delivery.
He made the remarks while speaking as the chief guest at the closing session of a two-day high-level policy workshop in Dhaka to review preparedness for implementing the national e-Health ID.
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The workshop was jointly organised by the Aspire to Innovate (a2i) Programme under the ICT Division, the Health Services Division and the Asian Development Bank.
The minister said the e-Health Card will allow physicians to access essential patient information regardless of whether treatment is received in rural or urban facilities, enabling more accurate diagnosis and care.
He added that the e-Health ID will serve as a foundational identity system in the health sector, allowing hospitals, clinics and service providers to securely exchange medical data.
Sakhawat Husain also said the government has taken three major initiatives — the Family Card, e-Health Card and Farmers Card — of which the Family Card has already been launched, while work on the other two is ongoing.
The workshop discussed technical capacity, infrastructure readiness and institutional coordination needed for implementing the Health ID, Electronic Medical Record (EMR) and Shareable Health Record (SHR) systems nationwide.
The event was attended by State Minister for Health Dr MA Muhit and Health Secretary Md Kamruzzaman Chowdhury, along with senior policymakers, health officials, technology experts and development partners.
