Countries in the Indo-Pacific region can boost their healthcare systems by working closely on the emerging sector of telemedicine
This piece is part of the series, Sustainable Development in the Indo-Pacific
As per the World Health Organisation, telemedicine can be described as, “the delivery of healthcare services, where distance is a critical factor, by all healthcare professionals using information and communication technologies for the exchange of valid information for diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disease and injuries, research, and evaluation, and for the continuing education of healthcare providers, all in the interests of advancing the health of individuals and their communities.” Telemedicine uses Information and Communication Technology (ICT) for connecting users to health resources at a different location, thereby, removing geographical barriers and improving health outcomes. While the concept of telemedicine is not new, COVID-19 increased its implementation in several countries.
Telemedicine has the potential to improve healthcare infrastructure to a large extent in the Indo-Pacific as well as across the world. It is necessary to have a comprehensive regulatory framework for the growth of telemedicine.
Telemedicine has some significant advantages over traditional medicine such as easy access to specialists, lower costs, medical access for people in underserved areas, reduced exposure to pathogens, and reduced medical overhead costs, amongst others. Telemedicine can also be an integral tool for achieving SDG 3, i.e., “to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages”. Apart from this, telemedicine can also directly or indirectly support the achievement of the SDG 5: “Achieving gender equality and empower all women and girls”, SDG 10: “Reducing inequality within and among countries”, SDG 12: “Ensuring sustainable consumption and production patterns”, and SDG 13: “Taking urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts”.
Though there are several factors which might impact the growth of telemedicine in a country, a favourable regulatory environment plays an integral role in its adoption. Several countries in the Indo-Pacific region have adopted favorable regulations to enable and promote it in the healthcare infrastructure, especially during the pandemic. For instance, in India, telemedicine was not implemented on a large scale before COVID-19 and wasn’t recognised by law until the Telemedicine Practice Guidelines were introduced to provide guidance in March 2020. Similarly, Japan introduced several recommendations and deregulations to increase the use of telemedicine during the pandemic.
On the other hand, Singapore has been a leader in in this sector, with measures such as the introduction of the National Telemedicine Guidelines in 2015, incorporation of telemedicine in Section A6 of the Singapore Medical Council’s Ethical Code and Ethical Guidelines in 2016, the introduction of Health Sciences Authority’s Regulatory Guidelines for Telehealth Products in 2017, and the launch of the Licensing Experimentation and Adaptation Programme (LEAP) in 2018. Singpaore even introduced the new Healthcare Services Act in January 2020, under which telemedicine will be licensed by 2022. Further, during the pandemic, the pre-approved teleconsultation digital solutions to assist SMEs were expanded in May 2020. Similarly, in Australia, the telemedicine sector was slowly growing even before the pandemic but in a restricted manner as the Medicare Benefits Scheme supported only a limited range of payments to specialists for video-based consultations. However, in March 2020, the Australian federal government introduced universal coverage for telemedicine, which largely increased its use. Similarly, other countries have also introduced some form of relaxed regulations for facilitating this emerging sector. The adoption and growth of telemedicine is, to a large extent, due to the social distancing and lockdown protocols that was placed in this region.
Since telemedicine is not limited by state, country, or international borders, there is a need to develop common international understanding on this issue. International cooperation can play a significant role in further facilitating it. For instance, India is a part of several international projects like the Pan-African eNetwork Project and the South Asian Association for Regional Co-operation (SAARC) Telemedicine Network Projects to promote and facilitate the growth of this sector. In a similar fashion, India had also proposed the development of the Pan Pacific Islands Project for telemedicine and tele-education in 2014. Further, international institutional initiatives such as the JIPMER–BIMSTEC Telemedicine Network, which is a network between Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research (JIPMER) and Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC), can be established. Such initiatives can facilitate the use telecommunication to assist medical treatment and promote the use of mobile health programmes. In addition, private enterprises can also be roped in to implement people-centric projects at the grassroots level in other Indo-Pacific countries. For instance, India’s leading private hospital chain, Apollo Hospitals, had established a telemedicine facility at the Fiji National University in 2013.
Since telemedicine is not limited by state, country, or international borders, there is a need to develop common international understanding on this issue. International cooperation can play a significant role in further facilitating it.
Telemedicine has the potential to improve healthcare infrastructure to a large extent in the Indo-Pacific as well as across the world. It is necessary to have a comprehensive regulatory framework for the growth of telemedicine. International cooperation and development of private-public initiatives is also required to fully realise its potential, both in the short and long term. Such initiatives should be part of international projects, enabling close collaborations with organisations from other countries.
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Basu Chandola is an Associate Fellow. His areas of research include competition law, interface of intellectual property rights and competition law, and tech policy. Basu has ...
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