Electronic patient record: Vaccination card soon in the patients App

The Federal Ministry of health is pushing the plans for the introduction of the so-called electronic patient record on 1. January 2021 forward.

On Thursday Minister Jens Spahn (CDU) gave the design for a “patient data protection act” to a vote in the Federal government.

The law is intended to ensure that the data that can leave the patient in the new electronic file, enter are safe.

“Health data are probably the most sensitive personal data there is”, said the Minister of health, Jens Spahn (CDU) in Berlin.

“The aim is that electronic patient data falling into the wrong hands. The goal is to give patients the opportunity to be able to your data, even reasonable use.”

Patient data in the App: EPO 2021 available

From 1. January 2021 should be able to create Doctors and hospitals at the request of the patient for such an electronic file. There, x-rays, medical reports, treatment reports, or information about regular medications that can be deposited.

The patient should get on the data but also self-access via a Smartphone App, which will be provided to you by your health insurance available.

In addition, patients can enter their own data, such as values of blood sugar measurements. The idea is that all this would have been in order, no matter where he is treated, his medical history is always with.

Electronic patient file remains voluntary

Spahn noted on Thursday, however, that the creation of such E-file voluntarily. Also will not be equal with the Start of 2021, all of the functions available.

Until 2022, also vaccination data, the Dental bonus booklet, the mother’s passport or the yellow book for children can be stored in the patient file. Also starting in 2022, it will be possible for each individual document in the file, determine which physician shall have access to and which not.

In the initial phase, the patient can give the doctor, only the whole file available for inspection free of or nothing at all. The Executive Board of the German Foundation for patient protection, Eugen Brysch, called on Thursday a “birth defect”.

So the Minister of health can do no trust the patient, he criticized.

To the question of how well one’s own health data is backed up can be, if you are using an App on the mobile phone, said Spahn, the Apps, the health insurance companies would have to bear the highest security standards.

He pointed as an example to other applications, such as Online Banking on your Smartphone with a so-called Two-factor authentication, where access to the account with a Pin number or fingerprint, and additional transaction number (TAN) is possible.

Starting in 2023, the data is Insured to your patient file voluntarily for the purposes of research can provide.

Also is planned the introduction of an App for recipes. Doctors should be able to send the prescription in the future, directly to the mobile phone of the patient, for example, if a new recipe for a permanent medication is needed.

The recipe App is to be independent of the E-patient file, and in the course of the year 2021 are provided.

The willingness to use such offerings, seems to be there: A survey of the digital Association Bitkom, had revealed last year that almost two-thirds of the population E-files “would definitely use” or “rather”.

Deutsche Presse-Agentur (dpa)

*The contribution of the “Electronic patient record: Vaccination card will soon be in the patient’s App,” published by FitForFun. Contact with the executives here.