| Success factors |
Recommendations |
| Regulatory and governance aspect |
Enhance "strategic" governance under the Ministry of Health and Social Protection to monitor the progress of telemedicine projects across various domains (medical, technical, organizational, legal, economic, etc.). Establish "operational" regional bodies under the umbrella of the "strategic" body. Incorporate private medical practice into the healthcare organization framework. Describe the patient care pathway and the processes involved in each telemedicine procedure to share a common vision of telemedicine practices. Consider the alignment of supply/need/demand in telemedicine deployment. Include telemedicine as a mandatory component in regional medical plans. |
| Regulatory aspect |
Update the list of regulatory classifications for telemedicine procedures. Define rules and conditions for the reimbursement of telemedicine procedures by paying institutions. Provide detailed guidelines for pricing and billing of telemedicine procedures. Clarify the responsibility for telemedicine acts in the case of tele-expertise (requesting physician versus required physician). Establish a patient consent process and ensure alternative care in case of refusal. Strengthen the data protection framework for telemedicine patient data, including the enactment of a specific law for patient data protection. |
| Operational aspect |
Operationalize the process of obtaining authorization for telemedicine practice. Define a process for homologation and certification of telemedicine technical platforms. Involve national entities, such as the National Data Protection Commission (CNDP) and the Digital Development Agency (ADD), in the homologation process. |
| Human resources |
Integrate a dedicated telemedicine curriculum into the healthcare training policy. Implement incentivizing tools for healthcare professionals who engage in telemedical practices. |
| Technical aspect |
Transition toward a digital prescription model by implementing an online prescription sending tool and acceptance of treatment by pharmacists. Accelerate the widespread adoption of digital medical records as a prerequisite for broader telemedicine deployment. Establish standards and norms for healthcare data hosting and patient data protection. Envision a national catalog of certified/homologated platforms. |
