Services and Diagnoses that Can Be Made through Telemedicine

Ms Joan Pereira asked the Minister for Health whether the Ministry will form a multi-disciplinary panel of experienced doctors to look into the types of services and diagnoses that can be made through telemedicine in Singapore, given the concerns over the risk of wrongful diagnosis.

Mr Gan Kim Yong: Telemedicine can potentially make access to healthcare services more convenient for Singaporeans. It is an evolving field.

In 2015, MOH's National Telemedicine Advisory Committee developed a set of telemedicine guidelines. These guidelines serve to guide healthcare providers in Singapore on the provision of safe and appropriate delivery of care via telemedicine. Overall, doctors providing telemedicine are expected to maintain the same standards of care as with in-person clinical consults. They should see their patients in-person when a physical assessment is warranted or refer them appropriately.

Last year, MOH also set up a regulatory sandbox framework to facilitate the development of new and innovative telemedicine care models while ensuring patient safety and welfare. This arrangement enables telemedicine providers to work with the Ministry to better understand the challenges associated with the delivery of telemedicine.

With the experience garnered through the sandbox, the telemedicine guidelines are being refreshed. MOH, in consultation with various professional bodies, has appointed a review committee comprising of experienced family physicians and medical specialists from both public and private healthcare sectors, experts in medical informatics and medical ethics, as well as representatives from various governmental organisations.

The revised guidelines will be released in 2020. Together, the refreshed guidelines and regulatory sandbox will help inform MOH on how best to regulate telemedicine.