有危才有機: 醫護行者 + iMeddy Telemedicine Platform
過去幾個月的疫情對香港的醫療系統構成不小的衝擊，亦令我們明白到，香港極需要運用科技增強醫療系統的抗逆力，同時提升效益，更好地服務市民。
在疫情高峰期，除醫管局外，本地已有多個網上看醫生配藥平台服務市民，如iMeddy線上醫療平台、非牟利組織「醫護行者」向新冠確診者提供的居家遙距藥劑支援等。
值得一提的是 iMeddy這個醫療平台。它由理工大學兩位畢業生利用雲端及流動運算技術，專門針對線上問診而開發。在疫情高峰期，這個平台專為出現輕微病徵而未送入隔離設施的新冠陽性或初步陽性患者，提供免費視像問診和相關醫療物資支援服務，患者可透過Facebook專頁或手機應用程式預約。由於當時每日都有大量新症出現，因此市民對平台的需求非常急切。
大家不難看出這些非常時期的醫療服務不少是依賴開放式的社會網絡平台如Facebook、Whatsapp或者手機應用程式等對接醫護人員及患者。這也有賴於平台背後的底層科技，為及時有效的服務提供了重要支援。這一過程中，阿里雲便為iMeddy提供了免費 Apps 技術應用的專業意見，並資助大量新增的雲資源需求。
第五波疫情為香港帶來極大的衝擊，也令我們明白到，香港醫療系統需要在科技應用方面有所提升。愚公非常希望第五波疫情帶來的「壓力測試」可以為社會敲響警號，好讓政府、醫管局、醫護人員及社會各界也能積極探索更優解決方案，例如把成熟、高效和安全的線上看病及配藥平台納入主流醫療系統。
The epidemic in the past few months has had a significant impact on Hong Kong’s healthcare system and has made us realize that there is a strong need to use technology to enhance the resilience of the healthcare system and to improve its effectiveness in serving the public.
During the peak of the epidemic, in addition to the Hospital Authority, there are several local online medical platforms to serve the public, such as the iMeddy online medical platform and the not-for-profit organization “Health In Action Community Pharmacy”, which provides home remote pharmacy support for newly diagnosed patients.
The iMeddy medical platform is worth mentioning in more details. It was developed by two graduates of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University using cloud and mobile computing technologies, specifically for online consultations. During the peak of the epidemic, the platform provided free video consultation and related medical supplies to Covid-19 positive or preliminary positive patients with mild symptoms who were not admitted to isolation facilities, and could be booked through a Facebook page or mobile app. As a large number of new cases were emerging every day, the demand for the platform was very urgent.
It is easy to see that many of the medical services in these extraordinary times relied on open social networking platforms such as Facebook, Whatsapp or mobile apps to connect healthcare professionals and patients. This also relies on the underlying technology behind the platforms, which provides important support for timely and effective services. In this process, Alibaba Cloud has provided iMeddy with expert advice on the application of free Apps technology and has funded a significant amount of additional cloud resource requirements.
The fifth wave of the epidemic has had a tremendous impact on Hong Kong and has made us realize that the Hong Kong healthcare system needs to be upgraded in terms of technology applications. I hope that the “stress test” brought by the fifth wave of the epidemic will serve as a wake-up call for the community, so that the government, Hospital Authority, healthcare professionals and the community can actively explore better solutions, such as incorporating a mature, efficient and safe online medical consultation and dispensing platform into the mainstream healthcare system.
