Insureds of Techniker Krankenkasse (TK) have already been using the benefits and core functions of the electronic patient file (ePA), which was developed in cooperation with IBM and is called „TK-Safe,“ since January 1, 2021. Around 30,000 new users are added every month, which for CEO Jens Baas is a signal that insured persons are accepting the benefits of the app and benefiting from the functions as well as the content.
100,000 patients out of a total of 10.8 million insured by TK have so far benefited from the central app, which provides an overview of medications, preventive checkups, doctor visits, diagnoses, vaccination schedules, and therapies, etc., but is to be further functionally expanded.
According to Baas, TK’s central app is still designed to be too complicated with the goal of complete control of healthcare by the patient. A simplified online registration and login process is desirable so that data exchange and data retrieval with practices, hospitals, and pharmacies do not lead to impediments in use from the summer onwards. In the process, TK loads the individual data into the file of its insured persons so that nothing more stands in the way of data exchange.
From summer 2021, patients will also be able to share findings, doctor’s letters, and laboratory results with other doctors. The TK CEO hopes that everything will be working well by then so that healthcare in Germany will receive a digital boost. Data exchange with other players in the healthcare system can also contribute to a better understanding of diseases and disease progression.
Source: www.kma-online.de