UNAIR NEWS – The emergence of Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in changes to health care systems around the world, including Indonesia. An example of such change is from limited practice of doctors except for emergency measures.
Released by the Ministry of Health’s website, restrictions on doctor’s practice are carried out to prevent the spread of the virus, especially in hospital area. As an alternative, the hospital can still provide long-distance health services or telemedicine.
However, apart from hospitals, there are other parties, such as technology companies that currently facilitate telemedicine practice through online app. One of them is Alfath Tech.
Not long ago, Alfath Tech, a technology company pioneered by an alumnus of Faculty of Dental Medicine (FKG) Universitas Airlangga, Akhmad Farkhan Azmi and his colleagues, Raga Bhirhatihin Alfath, Silva Ahmad, Abdush Shomad, and Syahrul Kholis, launched the telemedicine app. It is named Ruang Praktek (Exam Room).
Farkhan, revealed that the making of Ruang Praktek app aims to answer several problems that occur when practice restrictions are applied.
“I created Ruang Praktek app because it was inspired by the discussion with the late doctor Miftah Fawzy Sarengat. He was my best friend,” said Farkhan starting his story.
The Malang native said that amid the pandemic, he and Miftah saw medical workers are more vulnerable to being infected with the coronavirus than the general public.
“There are many causes, from the lack of personal protective equipment (PPE) to the excessive burden of health facilities. Furthermore, there was a decrease in the number of patients at health facilities because the patients are afraid to visit when patients or sick people also need help and medical advice from credible sources, “he explained.
However, telemedicine apps have become increasingly popular, with regulations from the Ministry of Health regarding restrictions on activities in health facilities, many people have taken advantage of the virtual form-based health services.
“Finally, Ruang Prakter was created. The goal is to be an extension facility of a health service or doctor’s practice through virtual media, “he added.
So, what is Ruang Praktek in essence? According to Farkhan, the concept of a Ruang Praktek is very different from other telemedicine apps, which mostly take the form of a marketplace.
“The concept is to bring back health facilities or doctors in front of patients,” he said.
Even though it comes in the form of a virtual service, patients can still schedule appointments according to the applicable terms and conditions. Moreover, in terms of services, all of these services will be directly focused on the health facility or the doctor.
“Furthermore, in terms of medical records, Ruang Praktek also meets the regulations listed in Regulation 74 of Indonesian Medical Councils of 2002,” he continued.
Even though it was only released four months ago, Ruang Praktek offers interesting features, such as teleconsultation, medical records and general consent , tele-screening, to medical advice.
“There are two applications. First, the doctor app, which targets doctors and dentists open their own practices independently or own a clinic. Second, the patient app intended for the general public. Both of them have been downloaded by more than fifty people, “he explained.
During the development process, Farkhan admitted that he and his team had experienced various obstacles, such as with the Health Law (UU) in Indonesia which did not facilitate telemedicine or teleconsultation for the community. “But, with the issuance of Minister of Health Regulation regarding telemedicine, the opportunity has opened up,” he added.
“Another obstacle is getting a user experience that is appropriate to the council and suitable for users. In addition, creating a telemedicine app is a new field for the development team because of many features they created for the first time. In the future, first, we will try to activate market education through small communities, “he explained.
Farkhan continued, the success his team in making telemedicine app could not be separated from the input given by his fellow doctors. “There are a lot of input from them which were then materialized through features in the application. One thing we are still working on is payment media so that it is integrated with e-wallets, “he said.
The colleagues who have used the Ruang Praktek are also helped because they can reconnect with patients and carry out teleconsultation according to the existing regulations.
“We hope that Ruang Praktek can help safeguard Indonesian medical personnel so the pandemic will end soon. Quoting the director general of World Health Organization (WHO), Tedros Adhanom, when health workers are at risk, we are all risk ! ” he said. (*)
Author: Nabila Amelia
Editor: Khefti Al Mawalia
