Improved availability of eHealth patient data

From July 1, 2026, a change in the health care reporting system will be introduced in Slovakia, so-called e-registration. Its essence is to link reported health performances to electronic health records in eHealth through a unique health record identifier (EZZ). The aim is to improve the quality of data and the availability of data on the patient in eHealth, to increase the transparency of healthcare reporting and to clarify the reimbursements for healthcare provided covered by public health insurance. Today, representatives of the National Health Information Centre (NCZI), health insurance companies, hospital and outpatient sectors have gathered together with Health Minister Kamil Šaško and State Secretary of the Slovak Republic Michal Štofko to inform the sector about the readiness for this change.
E-registration means better quality and more reliable data. We consider this essential for effective financing of health care. A comprehensive overview of what healthcare has been provided and also covered by public health insurance will be available in one place, said Minister of Health Kamil Šaško.
The eWriting project will also bring added value to patients. It will help to make the data on healthcare provided in eHealth more accurate and complete. Doctors will have better information on the patient and healthcare provided, which will promote better coordination and follow-up of healthcare.
–This change will bring with it two crucial moments. On the one hand, the doctor will see the patient's medical history and be much more effective in setting up his treatment, which is also essential for patient safety. On the other hand, health insurance companies will be able to use these data when assessing the eligibility for reimbursement of performance through verification of compliance between reported healthcare and eHealth records, State Secretary Michal Štofko, MZ SR.

Four regional information days for healthcare providers, organised by the Ministry of Health on this topic, have contributed significantly to raising awareness. Providers could participate in the training in both attendance and online. At the same time MZ SR made available e-mail addressEscaping@health.gov.skWhere providers can address their questions.We will gradually inform all our contractual partners about the changes that result from the introduction of e-registration. Our experts are and will continue to be helpful to every single healthcare provider in putting changes into practice. I believe that it is in this transitional period that we will be able to capture any shortcomings and set everything so that the system will be fully operational as of 1 July 2026; said General Manager of the General Health Insurance Matúš Jurové. He added that the aim was for the changes introduced to improve services for policyholders and healthcare providers.
The change does not concern those specializations which do not have to write down on eHealth, e.g. eye optics, pharmacies and dispensaries of medical devices, dispensaries, repair and servicing of individual medical devices, transport medical services, emergency medical services.
The outpatient sector welcomes the further shift in electronisation. It's a big deal for a doctor, it's a big deal for a patient. For a doctor who has already worked in an electronic system, everything runs in the background, but will have more information. For the patient, this is an enormous increase in safety at each subsequent examination, said chief expert of MZ SR for general medicine Etela Janeková.
The need to share information about the patient was also highlighted by the Vice President of the Slovak Society of General Practice Medicine Peter Lipovský. The more information we get about the patient's examinations and medications he has prescribed, the more data, the less tension and less nervousness he will be in the ambulances. We will be able to focus more on work and result in better quality care for the patient. said Lipovský.
The President agrees Union of Outpatient Providers Jaroslava Orosová: This is a huge benefit for us and especially for the patient. The hospital sector also supported the change for the better: the only change for us is even greater discipline. We, the providers, must be disciplined if we are to receive compensation for the performance in question from the health insurance company, said President of the Association of State Hospitals and General Director of the National Institute of Heart and Vascular Diseases in Bratislava Mongi Msolly.
The recording is a joint project whose success depends on the cooperation of all stakeholders. The NCZI has provided the necessary technical solutions and is ready to introduce eWriting. It shall continuously provide methodological and technical support to both healthcare providers and information system suppliers. On the part of providers, it is necessary to provide for up-to-date versions of information systems, valid eHealth approaches and updated data in NCZI registers, including the labour relations of health professionals, says General Manager NCZI Pavol Vrsanský.
The technical solution is designed to minimise the impact on the normal work of doctors and health professionals who register in eHealth. For each type of healthcare provision, the types of e-records in eHealth that are most comprehensive in relation to the healthcare provided.
Comprehensive information is published on the NCZI websiteEssaying - Essay