Strategic challenges facing user- and patient-centred e-health in Vietnam

This paper focuses on current strategic challenges for e-health development facing the Vietnamese government as it strives to implement an effective and efficient e-health service to end-users: healthcare professionals and, more importantly, the patients who are at the centre of any successfully developed and implemented e-health approach. It presents details of the state-of-the-art of current healthcare characteristics, particular to the country, its healthcare information management system (HIMS) and a snapshot of information communication technology (ICT) development as it pertains to the healthcare industry. A critical evaluation analysis of how the Vietnamese government has thus far implemented e-health into the healthcare services is also given with an assessment of the technical, managerial and educational issues that need to be addressed for any future successful development and implementation of e-health in the country. As primary end-users of any e-health service, special consideration is given to the engagement of patients in such development.