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Source:
www.moh.gov.sg |
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Second Reading of the National Registry Of Diseases
Bill |
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The National Registry Of Diseases Bill |
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Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, "That the
Bill be now read a second time." |
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INTRODUCTION |
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Rational healthcare policies are underpinned
by accurate and timely information. For example, should we promote
regular breast screening among Singaporean women? If so, for which age
groups and at what frequency? |
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Settling such policies require robust
analysis of cost-effectiveness and survival data, without which our
decisions will be merely arbitrary or based on data drawn from other
countries which may or may not apply to Singaporeans. |
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Good information is especially critical when
we have to deal with diseases such as cancer, heart disease, stroke and
kidney failures that are major causes of death and morbidity among
Singaporeans. |
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There are many ways to collect such
information. We do so through periodic surveys but such data can only
provide a snapshot of the prevailing situation at a particular point in
time. |
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We need to supplement this with continuous
time-series data which tracks the incidence and outcomes of the disease
in the population. A well established method for gathering such
information is through setting up a national disease registry. |
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With time-series data collected by the
registry we can answer many critical health policy questions, such as: |
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i. What is the number of new cases of a
disease every year - is it increasing or decreasing – do we need to
adjust the type of health services to meet this changing trend? |
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ii. Is the disease affecting a particular
segment of the population more than others - how can we better target
our prevention and treatment programmes? |
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iii. How do people suffering from the
chronic disease fare? How long do they survive and how do we compare
with other countries? |
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iv. Have prevention and treatment programmes
made a difference? |
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Disease Registries |
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In 1968, we set up our first disease
registry, which was the Singapore Cancer Registry. This was followed by
the Heart Registry in 1988 and the Renal Registry in 1993. Currently,
the Stroke Registry is being piloted in some public hospitals. These
four registries make up our National Registry of Diseases. |
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A good national registry must meet two
criteria. |
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First, it must be comprehensive i.e. it
should cover all cases in the country. If a Registry misses out a
significant segment of the population, this may result in under or over
reporting of disease burden. For instance, it would be wrong to conclude
from reports drawn from one hospital that cases of a particular disease
have increased nationally. |
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Second, the registry must be well-maintained
with close tracking of how the disease progresses over time. This
requires the submission of individualised information, so that new data
can be matched with existing data in the registry, thus avoiding any
double-counting. |
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Our current disease registries suffer a
major limitation as it is based on voluntary reporting. While public
hospitals have been forthcoming in reporting, many private hospitals
have largely not taken part. |
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As a result, our registries are incomplete.
A major concern of the healthcare providers is the lack of clarity on
the legal basis for the disclosure of individualised information to
disease registries, whether they will be breaching medical
confidentiality. |
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More..... |
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Source:
www.moh.gov.sg News 12 Nov 2007 |
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Related Article: |
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Public consultation on proposed National Registry of
Diseases Bill |
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Notice |
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FrontPage Edition: Sat 17 November 2007
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