To reach a consensus on governance with integrity among hospitals and the medical and pharmaceutical industry in Taiwan, the National Health Insurance Administration (NHIA) organized the Integrity Forum for NHI's 30th Anniversary on September 2. Representatives from the industry, academia, and government were invited to exchange ideas under the topic 'Management with Integrity and Creating Win-Win Situations.' Hospitals and the medical and pharmaceutical industry conveyed their management ideas, emphasizing integrity and sustainable development. The forum was successful, with splendid discussions taking place on-site.
Deputy Minister Jih-Haw Chou of the Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW) and Deputy Minister Mou-Hsin Huang of the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) were invited to give the opening remarks for the morning session of the forum. Deputy Minister Chou emphasized the importance of upholding integrity, reducing unnecessary waste, and ensuring the reasonable allocation of NHI resources to achieve sustainability for the NHI program. Deputy Minister Huang highlighted the need to raise awareness of integrity and anti-corruption in the private sector. Furthermore, the management of hospitals and the medical and pharmaceutical industry is critical to the health and well-being of everyone in Taiwan. This industry also bears significant social responsibility, making the implementation of governance with integrity even more essential.
In the panel discussion, President Liang-Gee Chen of the Taiwan Digital Health Industry Development Association, Chair I-Jan Yeh of Transparency International Taiwan, Dean Chih-Hsiung Chen of National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University School of Law, Chairman Ray-Jade Chen of Taipei Medical University, and Professor Weng-Foung Huang of the Institute of Health and Welfare Policy at National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University gathered to discuss smart medicine and management with integrity. They emphasized that transparency, accountability, and predictability are central to global society today. Deputy Director General I-Ming Parng of the NHIA noted that smart medicine is a key focus for the Presidential Office's Healthy Taiwan Promotion Committee. Additionally, the NHI must showcase its value. How to present the quality and value of healthcare through the NHI is a challenge for the future
In the opening remarks for the afternoon session, Shih-Chung Chen, the minister without portfolio of the Executive Yuan, discussed the difficulties and challenges the government has faced in implementing the NHI program over the past three decades. Chen pointed out that the government, as well as medical service institutions and the medical and pharmaceutical industry, is responsible for taking proper care of the health of all Taiwanese people, and they should take the long view to create a bright future for the NHI program. Director General Chung-Liang Shih of the NHIA stated that to answer the call of the United Nations' 17 Sustainable Development Goals, the NHIA has initiated efforts to establish a smart NHI. Some of the notable outcomes include the software development kit (SDK) for My Health Bank, which facilitates value-added applications for personal health data, and the optimization of the MediCloud System, both aimed at enhancing information timeliness and transparency and increasing public participation. In the future, the NHIA will continue to collaborate with all relevant sectors to obtain better healthcare services for the people of Taiwan.
The forum consisted of three parts: Benchmark Learning, Keynote Speech, and Panel Discussion, focusing on the investments and efforts that hospitals and the medical and pharmaceutical industry make in management with integrity. The NHIA will continue to collaborate with medical service institutions and the medical and pharmaceutical industry to create a more convenient and friendly healthcare environment, grounded in the consensus of integrity, to safeguard the health of everyone in Taiwan.