Creating equitable healthcare: Transforming patient care through CP’s technology

Charoen Pokphand Group Co., Ltd. (C.P. Group) operates under the “Three-Benefit Principle,” which states that the Group must strive to bring benefits not only to itself, but first and foremost to the countries and communities we operate within. For this reason, the Group recognizes the importance of addressing the ballooning inequality which has become a systemic risk for governments, societies, and businesses across the globe. Inequality fuels distrust in economic and political systems, leads to greater unrest, and exacerbates the impact of crises. To ensure that we can grow sustainably alongside society, the Group has initiated a number of important projects in order to tackle inequality, especially in finance and healthcare.

Across many parts of Asia and the developing world, countries face many challenges when it comes to providing equitable healthcare access for all. In Thailand, one of the biggest barriers faced by patients is access to healthcare professionals, with only 800 doctors per million people, and this is even starker in rural areas, where there are less than two doctors for every 10,000 people. For the 48% of Thailand’s population who live in remote areas, the significant financial burden imposed by long travel distances and sometimes high medical fees involved limit access to essential healthcare. Even within cities, busy traffic can pose a challenge to patients receiving timely emergency care.

CP Group, through its subsidiaries, is working to mitigate such challenges through innovation and technology.

Smart healthcare platform: To directly address the challenge of healthcare access, CP’s True Digital Group has introduced an all-in-one smart healthcare platform linking online and offline health services. Users of the MorDee mobile app are able to conduct keyword searches for medical symptoms and then connect with relevant medical experts, including setting up remote consultations with over 500 leading institutions and receiving online treatment advice. Post-consultation, they can use the app to claim medical leave or insurance from employers or even order medicine for home delivery. Within the Thai capital Bangkok and surrounds, delivery can be less than two hours and a day or less for distant provinces.

A typically tedious paperwork process of insurance transactions and claims can also be expedited through the MorDee mobile app. True’s partnerships with NHSO National Healthcare Security Office, Insurance Association, and others, including AIA, Allianz Ayudhya, CHUBB, Ocean Life and Prudential Life Assurance enables easier filing and faster claims processing.

Decentralised offline medical care options through “True Health Corners”: For individuals without smartphones, kiosks located in retail outlets allow those communities to access healthcare services without going to their nearest hospital or healthcare facility. Members of the public can undergo essential health screenings, have online consultations with physicians, and buy prescription drugs through integrated cutting-edge technologies such as Smart Mirrors at the “True Health Corners”, thereby reducing related medical costs.

Saving lives through rapid responses and smart connectivity: Traffic delays can be a huge impediment when it comes to providing the necessary medical services needed to save lives. In the case of emergency situations, one-third of critically ill patients die in an ambulance on the way to a hospital. This issue is particularly prevalent in a city like Bangkok, which was ranked 15th out of the 390 cities surveyed worldwide for the most traffic congestion.

To enable quick critical responses, True Health partnered with Siriraj Hospital (a leading healthcare institution in medical innovation in Thailand and APAC), to develop an Emergency Response (or Smart EMS Platform).

• Patients’ locations are automatically tracked once they call 1669, the national hotline. The ambulance fleet management system monitors drivers and response speeds, coordinating with trained local volunteer groups deployed to arrive first at the scene to provide first aid services.
• Once in the ambulance, 5G connectivity is then used to relay real-time information about the patient to the hospital, including vital signs, video images and medical records. Medics can then prepare ahead of the patient’s arrival at the emergency room, which greatly improves their chances of survival. Connectivity on board the ambulance can also be used to enable remote consultations with experts to provide real-time and comprehensive first aid treatment.

The process has proven so effective that 4 of the largest medical schools in Thailand have engaged with CP to scale this platform within each provincial region: Vachira (Phuket, CMU (Chiang Mai), Provincial Org. (Samut Prakan), Banpheo (Samut Sakhon). Partnering with leading healthcare institutions, the platform has potential to save up to 40,000 lives during medical emergencies each year.

Enhanced patient management efficiency through Teleclinic digital aid: A significant challenge hindering well-being accessibility in Thailand is inefficient patient management in public hospitals. Recognizing this, True Health has set up Teleclinic aids to help streamline staff care, enhance queue efficiency, refine patient coordination, with monitor bed availability, and conduct critical care analysis in the works. True Health worked with Chulalongkorn Hospital, which draws in patients from rural regions due to its esteemed reputation, to tackle their medical staff’s workload. This system greatly alleviated the workload for nurses by almost entirely doing away with traditional paperwork. It has also digitized their staff and nurse management systems, fostering effective collaboration among medical professionals.

The journey to achieving equitable healthcare takes time, but with our objective of enhancing well-being access for all in Thailand and beyond, CP Group believes innovation and technology can contribute significantly to create game-changing differences in patient care.

This article first appeared on C.P. Group’s website on 12 January 2024.