Multitudes of patients remain unaware of their digital medical records. - Multiple Patients Yet to Access Their Electronic Medical Records
In a significant stride towards digitalizing healthcare, millions of insured individuals in Germany now have electronic patient records (ePR), with around 40 million ePRs being accessed weekly in practices, clinics, and pharmacies. However, only about 1.2 million are actively using them, indicating a need to increase acceptance among both patients and healthcare providers.
To address this challenge, several key approaches can be considered:
1. **Enhance Technical Integration and Interoperability**: Implementing robust interoperability standards, such as FHIR, enables seamless integration of ePRs with existing healthcare workflows and other digital health systems. This helps clinicians access comprehensive patient data in real-time, supporting better clinical decisions and coordination across multidisciplinary teams.
2. **Address Regulatory and Liability Clarity**: A clear and consistent regulatory framework is crucial. Germany’s recent adoption of the EU Representative Actions Directive (RAD) implies increased manufacturer accountability, necessitating transparent compliance and liability schemes that build trust among stakeholders. Clear guidance on data protection, device classification, and adverse event reporting related to ePR use can improve confidence in these systems.
3. **Focus on Training and Cultural Change**: Comprehensive training programs for clinicians are essential to make ePR use intuitive and clearly linked to improved patient care. Change management efforts should include transparent communication about ePR capabilities and limitations, fostering trust and willingness to engage with the technology.
4. **Improve Accessibility and Module Availability**: Many practices in Germany currently lack necessary ePR modules, causing implementation bottlenecks. Supporting practices with easier access to required technology and ensuring necessary modules are broadly available is critical. Simplifying procurement and funding mechanisms for ePR systems ensures more equitable adoption, especially in underfunded or rural healthcare settings.
5. **Enhance Patient Experience and Data Security**: Patients’ acceptance increases when they understand the benefits of the ePR for their care quality and data security. Transparent policies on data usage, consent, and security protections must be clearly communicated. Features that link physical and mental health data, as well as alerts for vulnerable patients, demonstrate how ePRs enhance safety and personalized care, which can improve patient trust and willingness to engage with their records.
6. **Leverage Digital Health Policies and Innovation Laws**: Germany’s Digital Act and evolving health policies aimed at innovation and data utilization can facilitate broader rollouts of ePR infrastructure, support scalable solutions, and foster digital health innovation more generally.
In addition, patients can log in to the ePR to set which doctors can see which data and what should not be visible. At Barmer, 7.8 million ePRs have been set up, with around 250,000 active users. New useful functions, such as a medication list and a medication plan, are being added to the ePA. Doctors can fill and view the ePR, even if insured individuals do not actively use it themselves. By October, doctors will be legally required to use and fill the ePR with relevant documents.
To use the ePR app, patients need an electronic ID card with a PIN or the eHealth card with a PIN, which can be requested from the insurer. Among the eleven AOKs nationwide, around 200,000 insured individuals have created a digital identity as an access path.
As the use of ePRs in practices and clinics is currently being expanded nationwide after a test phase, it is crucial to ensure that relevant information like vaccination records, bonus books, or X-rays should be retrievable via the e-file soon. Health expert Lucas Auer of the federal association suggests that patients should be able to decide which institutions can access their test results and billing data.
Jens Baas, spokesman for the traffic light coalition's health policy, emphasizes the need for a tangible benefit for the ePA to gain wide acceptance. Gematik reports that there are now 3.1 million "health IDs" in use, and 70 million of the approximately 74 million insured individuals have received an ePR from their insurer since January. Those who do not want an ePR must actively object.
In conclusion, by focusing on technical integration, regulatory clarity, clinician training, accessibility, patient engagement, and supportive policies, we can significantly improve the implementation and acceptance of electronic patient records in Germany, ultimately benefiting both patients and healthcare providers.
- To boost the utilization of electronic patient records (ePR) among both patients and healthcare providers, it's essential to implement science-based technologies that improve accessibility and module availability, making it simpler for practices in Germany to procure necessary ePR modules.
- To increase trust in ePRs, health-and-wellness education should be provided to the community, focusing on understanding the benefits of these records for medical-conditions management, data security, and personalized care. A clear and concise explanation of data usage, consent, and security protections can help people feel more comfortable with these digital tools.
