"If we want to cater to the rising public demands for better services at lower price-points, then we, as healthcare providers, can no longer isolate ourselves anymore from adopting IT," Dr Nam said. "However, it is the rapid progress the Internet and the advent of cloud computing that has been nurturing this drive for IT innovation and service integration within the health sector."

"This includes the presence of social networks, availability of enriched multimedia facilities, improved collaborative communications, and reliable high-speed broadband infrastructure - all of which are now critical elements for healthcare services and made possible with the growing popularity of cloud computing," he said.

"In addition, the digital era has transformed the way consumers interact with medical facilities as they have easy access to a vast trove of information related to healthcare," said Dr Nam. "Current service offerings in the health sector also have experienced similar improvements. These advancements are very apparent in the areas of knowledge access, collaborative efforts, and technology innovations."

"Even now, young doctors accustomed to social networking have been pushing for change, introducing new and more convenient practices into the industry," he said. "This up-and-coming workforce are already asking why they cannot log onto an online portal and dispense drugs to patients remotely which is now made possible through the cloud.".

"By adopting IT into its operations, the healthcare industry has improved tremendously in many areas," added Dr Nam. "Besides innovating services that focus on value for money, better practices and enhanced offerings have also been introduced. This includes transparent and interactive medical information sharing activities across the healthcare value chain, improvements on medical and healthcare service standards, and an increased focus on preventive healthcare."