According to ΗΔΙΚΑ (Social Security Electronic Government, Ηλεκτρονική Διακυβέρνηση Κοινωνικής Ασφάλισης Α.Ε.), the number of registrations on the “non-material prescription” platform has exceeded three million.
In particular, since March 2020, 3,001,144 citizens have registered their phone number and email address on the ehealth.gov.gr platform in order to receive medical prescriptions, referrals and certificates remotely, via messages (by email or by phone). Reportedly, the number of prescriptions and referrals issued remotely is about 40% of the total mass of medical documents issued daily.
Digital Government Minister Kyriakos Pierrakakis expressed his satisfaction with the process. According to him, “in less than two years, more than one in three adults use the possibility of obtaining prescriptions online. The positive reaction of citizens and doctors testifies to the usefulness of the service, which has become the first of many steps in our close cooperation with the Ministry of Health. At the same time, the intangible recipe is very important for another reason, as it reflects the philosophy of digital transformation: we creatively use the systems we have received, constantly producing new services in accordance with the needs of citizens.”
Non-tangible recipes play a key role in the fight against the pandemic
For his part, Minister of Health Thanos Plevris stressed that “non-financial prescriptions have played and continue to play a key role in the overall treatment of the pandemic, and at the same time are a valuable tool that makes life easier for citizens. This is evidenced by the fact that the digital application has 3 million subscribers.”
“In addition, the data we collect from non-financial prescriptions is extremely useful in our efforts to develop new public health policies, as well as to optimize the cost of pharmaceuticals. We improve the daily life of citizens in practice and protect vulnerable populations,” said minister.
ΗΔΙΚΑ CEO Niki Tsuma emphasized that “the leadership is committed to supporting the Ministry of Digital Governance policy regarding the development and implementation of digital technologies.”
It should be noted that the non-material prescription was one of the first new services added to the gov.gr portal. Thus, a very important and delicate process for all participants in the process (citizens, doctors and pharmacists) was simplified, and security, transparency and confidentiality were ensured at all stages.
The system is operated and monitored by ΗΔΙΚΑ, a supervised body of the Ministry of Digital Government, in close cooperation with the Ministry of Health. Initial non-material recipe function consisted of prescribing medications. Then, in August 2020, the ability to issue non-tangible prescriptions was added, and in September 2021, non-tangible/remote medical certificates were added.
In addition, from August 2021, those who are registered on the “non-material recipe” portal have the opportunity to use myhealth app. Through which citizens get quick, easy and secure access to their data on electronic and intangible destinations.
Among other things, the non-material prescription was used in the National Vaccination Campaign. In particular, during the period of delimitation of the population by age categories, those who were registered on the ehealth.gov.gr platform received an SMS with a preliminary appointment for an appointment, the date of which they could accept or change. Through this process, millions of vaccination appointments were arranged for citizens quickly and accurately, contributing to the smooth running of the program.
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