LAHORE: The manual database system of all the teaching hospitals will be computerised, said Specialised Healthcare and Medical Education Secretary Najam Ahmed Shah on Saturday. He was talking to the media after visiting the newly-established online IT registration system for patients in the Emergency Department of Sir Ganga Ram Hospital on Saturday. “The online IT database system will help record authentic data of patients, nature of their diseases, complete information regarding the availability and provision of medicines and other facilities to the patients,” he said. He added that the database would be helpful in enhancing the capacity/performance of the hospitals, future planning and to prepare a strategy to meet the challenges in a befitting manner. Fatima Jinnah Medical University Vice Chancellor Prof Khalid Masood Gondal, Registrar Prof Dr Shireen Khawar, Medical Superintendent Dr Fayyaz Butt, Skills Lab Director Prof Khalid Javed Khan, the IT GM, members of the faculty and other administrative doctors were also present on the occasion. Prof Khalid Masood Gondal briefed the secretary regarding the role of the skills lab in the training of doctors. He said that hands-on training was provided to the trainee doctors on dummy bodies in the lab regarding the various surgical procedures which were being carried out in the emergency department. “This enables the doctors to later treat the patients in the emergency without facing any difficulty,” he said. Talking to the media, Health Secretary Najam Ahmed Shah said that the data entry process had started in the teaching hospitals from November 11, 2017. “After the Children’s Hospital Lahore and Mayo Hospital Lahore, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital is the third teaching hospital where online registration of the patients coming to the emergency has been started,” he said. The secretary added that later the online registration and database would be extended to other departments, such as the out-patient department.