The health appointment system allows them to book appointments using a QR code scan.

Despite the availability of life-saving pneumococcal and flu vaccines, less than 10 percent of Singaporeans above the age of 65 have taken both doses, prompting the Government to seek innovative solutions. As a response to this, software development firm Open Government Products (OGP) has released a health appointment system (HAS) that makes the programme more accessible to seniors.

“When it came to … accessibility, we found that it was quite difficult to get a vaccine. So that’s why we want to address this area,” said Dr Nicola Lew, product and policy, for OGP.

To launch the pilot programme of the system, OGP, with the help of the Government, will reach out to more than 600,000 seniors in Singapore. Through the appointment system, they can now receive their Community Health Assist Scheme (CHAS)-funded pneumococcal vaccines under the National Adult Immunisation Schedule (NAIS).

 

How the app works

Through a simple scan of a QR code, eligible adults aged 65 and above can access the app and book their vaccination appointment.

“They or their loved ones can scan a QR code and be directed to our website where they would be able to easily search for CHAS GP clinics available near them,” said Dr Lew.

Clinics were invited to enrol in the HAS during its public launch on August 14, 2022. Dr Lew said the app allows clinics to fully manage the availability of appointment slots with minimal administration required.

If the pilot launch is successful, Dr Lew said they will roll out the appointment system from 150 clinics to 300. “But we do hope that if the pilot does prove to be successful, we would like to expand it to include other vaccination types,” she added.

One of the clinics that signed up for the pilot launch was DoctorAnywhere clinic headed by Dr Raymond Ong. The new appointment system allows them to notify applicants that there are still vaccine stocks at the inoculation site, Ong explained.

“[The app] assists the GPs in assuring us that there is a stream of patients coming in. [It compels them to be mindful that they] should stock more vaccines, prepare, and cater time for these patients as well,” he added.

Ong said they are also able to gauge the volume of demand through the appointment system. “I think that’s something that most clinics will be able to handle as well, especially now that we have a system sort of keeping, informing us of the demand,” he said. DoctorAnywhere offers National Adult Immunisation such as influenza, pneumococcal conjugate, pneumococcal polysaccharide, tetanus, reduced diphtheria, acellular pertussis, human papillomavirus, Hepatitis B, measles, mumps and rubella, and varicella.