BuddyWorks is a Telemedicine project of the National Telehealth Center (NTHC). It operates by enabling doctors in rural areas upload information about complicated cases through a server. This data can either be text-based or multimedia in the form of images. A nurse stationed in the NTHC performs triage and forwards the inquiry to an appropriate specialist. Uploaded information is then reviewed by the specialist, who provide their opinion on the case by uploading a response back through the same electronic portal. Doctors in remote municipalities can then access the portal and review the responses. This system has resulted in increased access to quality specialty health care services by the community members.
The program has faced a number of challenges in its initial phase, such as difficulty in transporting computers and setting up portals, and resistance to use among some doctors. Additionally, since the program was initially wholly internet-based, the lack of a reliable internet connection in some of the program areas made it difficult to send request for and receive medical assistance. All of these difficulties resulted in there being only 8 referrals in two years.
Identifying these challenges, BuddyWorks moved away from relying on computers and adopted a mobile-phone based referral system, shifting to SMS, MMS and Email. Since the transfer, there have been 1939 tele-health referrals from remote doctors over a period of 17 months. This shift was coupled with a partnership with DOH's DTTB program, which made coordination and referral faster and easier.
A total of 1,939 telereferrals were made and responded to for a period of six years. These came from 239 primary care physicians in remote rural municipalities in the country serving a total of about 4.68 million people. Currently, 109 doctors – from Batanes to Zamboanga – are enrolled in the program.
