Analysis of eHealth solutions in Slovenia: A usage perspective

Abstract

The project for the digitalization of Slovenian health care (eHealth) should integrate all fragmented information systems and provide relevant medical, economic and administrative data, which could improve the increasingly important evidence-based decision-making and management in the health care system. This paper explores the current state of the most important eHealth solutions in Slovenia, i.e. ePrescription, eAppointment and Central Registry of Patient Data, and furthermore specifically focuses on different aspects of their use by health care professionals and patients. The in-depth analysis included the review of eHealth-related sources and structured discussions with the experts responsible for the development and implementation of eHealth solutions. The research reveals that significant progress has been made in the last 3 years and that the short-term objectives of eHealth solutions have been met almost without exception. However, in order to further exploit the potentials of eHealth in the future, all efforts behind this project will have to be supported by systematic measures on all levels as well as the firm commitment of stakeholders.