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physical documents. Everything is done electronically. This saves time for those seeking treatment," he said.
That saved time could become one of digitalisation ' s biggest dividends.
For patients, it can mean fewer repeated processes, smoother referrals and shorter waits.
For doctors and nurses, it means less time searching for information and potentially more time treating patients.
And for policymakers, connected data can provide a clearer picture of population health, helping identify trends and allocate resources more effectively.
FROM RECORDS TO REFORM
Malaysians are already embracing digital healthcare.
As of Apr 2026, 4.21 million people had been registered within the Health Ministry ' s digital health ecosystem, generating more than 22.41 million transactions— about 75,000 a day.
PERSADA is also setting an ambitious service benchmark: eight out of 10 patients receiving treatment within an hour. When the initiative was outlined in June, 63 per cent of patients were already waiting less than 30 minutes.
But Dzulkefly sees the transformation extending beyond urban hospitals.
" Not a single healthcare facility, including a rural clinic in the most remote corner of the country, will be
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left behind," he said. That could prove critical. Better connectivity opens the door to telehealth, allowing expertise to travel digitally instead of requiring every patient to travel physically.
Ahmad Fahmi bin Mohamed Fadzil
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As Dzulkefly put it, real digital transformation will be achieved when patients in the most remote communities can obtain specialist consultations without enduring difficult journeys. |
THE TRUST QUESTION
Yet putting healthcare online creates another challenge.
Medical records contain highly sensitive information. As more hospitals, clinics, and systems connect, cybersecurity, privacy, access controls, and data governance must grow alongside them.
A national digital healthcare ecosystem cannot merely be efficient. It must be trusted.
Interoperability presents another hurdle. Different facilities and technologies have to communicate seamlessly, requiring common standards and sustained investment.
Digital transformation is rarely achieved simply by buying technology. People must use it effectively. Processes must change. Systems must work together.
The RM1 billion therefore buys Malaysia something more important than computers, connectivity or software.
It buys an opportunity to rethink how public healthcare is delivered.
Ultimately, success will not be measured by the number of hospitals connected or records digitised.
It will be measured at the registration counter, in the consultation room and at the pharmacy.
And by whether Malaysians walking into a government clinic spend less time waiting— and more time being cared for. – @ green
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