The Ministry of Digital Economy and Society (DES) has joined forces with Huawei Technologies (Thailand) to strengthen Thailand's public health sector by providing innovative technologies to support field hospitals.
DES Minister Chaiwut Thanakhamanusorn yesterday led a team to hand over telemedicine devices and related technologies provided by Huawei to Bang Khun Thian Geriatric Hospital, which has been used as a field hospital to accommodate the increasing number of Covid-19 patients.
The minister also delivered communication and security systems including internet wi-fi IP phones and CCTV systems provided by the National Telecom Plc to the hospital.
With the increasing number of Covid-19 patients in Thailand, and many hospitals almost exceeding capacity, medical personnel are working tirelessly, officials say. Mr Chaiwut said the ministry has been integrating digital technology to support the public health sector to tackle the outbreak.
Huawei has committed to provide support for communication innovations worth more than six million baht to enhance the handling of the pandemic for staff working onsite. The technologes include AI-assisted diagnostic solutions, 5G telemedicine, InPatient area Intelligent Management, and eLTE broadband trunking, all managed from the IdeaHub control centre.
Mr Chaiwut urged the importance of cooperation between the public and private sectors to fight against the pandemic.
"The government encourages the integration of technology into the country's administration which includes Covid-19 management, in line with the urgent policy as approved by the cabinet," he said. "The ministry has put significant focus on the safety of its citizens and the management of the ongoing spread of Covid-19."
Huawei Technologies (Thailand) CEO Abel Deng said digital technology has become essential for the public health sector in tackling the deficiencies of the health sector.
"5G technology, Cloud and AI can respond to multiple types of challenges that the public health sector is encountering at the moment. With the AI-assisted diagnosis solutions, the medical personnel can analyse CT quantification results of cases of infection with high accuracy," he said.
In addition, the 5G Telemedicine allows medical experts across Thailand to coordinate with doctors and onsite personnel to provide online consultation to patients, monitoring patients' conditions via smart devices from anywhere, which helps reduce the infection risk to medical personnel.
The InPatient area intelligent Management is based upon AI technology installed in the screening camera at the entrance, and helps monitor the density of high-risk areas, measure body temperatures, and support the eLTE broadband trunking.
"As a leading technology company, Huawei Technologies (Thailand) is also a trusted ICT partner in Thailand and a proactive digital transformation enabler which continuously strives to contribute with social values," Mr Abel said.
Bang Khun Thian Geriatric Hospital director Suparach Suwattanaphim said technologies handed by the ministry and Huawei will greatly help the medical personnel's workload as well as reduce the risk of more infections.
"I am positive that the cooperation from every sector and the implementation of medical technology will quickly help improve the situation," he said.