Press release
Released for publication on 11 April 2008

National Plan for implementing on-line health care services

The new report on SAINI on-line health care services for citizens creates a framework for supporting the public in their independent promotion of their own health as well as flexible electronic transactions within the health care service system.

The recently completed report is part of the SAINI project (interactive electronic services for citizens) coordinated by the Finnish Innovation Fund (Sitra) and involving the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, the Social Insurance Institution of Finland (Kela), the National Public Health Institute, the Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities, the Finnish Centre for Health Promotion (Tekry) and other operators, companies and financing institutions in health care and information and communications industries.

- There is an obvious demand for electronic health care services. The government and local authorities as well as the private sector and NGOs are all developing electronic services of their own. Currently, there are a number of different pilot projects in progress. At the same time, significant IT acquisitions are planned and implemented and decisions upon system development and products and services to be provided are made within companies, says Hannu Hanhijärvi, Executive Director of Sitra’s Health Care Programme.

- It’s important to ensure that services are not developed from the organisations’ perspective only. The availability of the services for citizens and customers need to be secured according to the one-stop-shop principle as much as possible, says Hanhijärvi.

The SAINI report serves as a kind of handbook providing a view of implementing user-oriented, high-quality, cost-effective, compatible and functional electronic services without forgetting the need for renewing health care structures and processes. The report describes a) the SAINI electronic health care services for citizens –concept, b) the guidelines for national architecture and c) draft for the phased implementation process (road map).

Customer-focused services

The SAINI service concept is a combination of centralised and decentralised electronic services that are connected to data systems and registers in a customer-focused, purposeful and functional manner. These include appointment services, transmission of laboratory results, prescription renewals, payment and compensation services and various types of information services. These services are used to support citizen’s decision-making in health-related matters as well as interaction and information flow between professionals. The services will enable self-service for citizens in those functions, where self-service is appropriate.

The objective of the national SAINI architecture is to standardise technical solutions and services of current and future electronic services. The architecture acts as a shared target for different interest groups and parties.

The Road Map in the report describes the different stages of implementing the electronic services on national level. The first and the most critical stage is to link the SAINI services -concept to the national strategy for electronic health care services. The strategy provides clear definitions for the ownership, management, control and funding models of the services.

Significance of cooperation

- The SAINI service concept is to be developed in close cooperation with its users – citizens and health care professionals. The first stage will be about implementing the already piloted services, which have produced good feedback. In the second stage, services enabling the management of data related to the personal health of each individual will be introduced. Here, data widely covers all transaction data, data registered by professionals and data recorded by citizens themselves. Later, when there is a sufficient amount of data, it can be controlled and utilised intelligently using different Business Intelligence solutions, says Susanne Valkeakari, Project Manager of the SAINI project at Logica Suomi Oy.
 
Compatible and interoperable SAINI services support the management of treatment entities across organisational boundaries, self-care, the renewal of health care structures and processes and the improvement of quality.

- Creation of the basic infrastructure for electronic systems and user-friendly development of electronic transaction methods for citizens are essential requirements for the development of on-line health care services. The SAINI report is an important document and shows the direction for advancing. The report will be handed to the sub-committee of the Ministry’s advisory board, says Pentti Itkonen, Head of Development at the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health.

Further information

Sitra, the Finnish Innovation Fund
Hannu Hanhijärvi, Executive Director, tel. +358 9 6189 9440, firstname.lastname@sitra.fi
Marja Pirttivaara, Development Director, tel. +358 9 6189 9260, firstname.lastname@sitra.fi

Ministry of Social Affairs and Health
Pentti Itkonen, Head of Development, tel. +358 50 387 7600, firstname.lastname@stm.fi
Annakaisa Iivari, Ministerial Advisor, tel.  +358 40 749 3225, firstname.lastname@stm.fi

Logica Suomi Oy
Matti S. Häkkinen, Director, tel. +358 40 734 1417, firstname.middleinitial.lastname@logica.com

The SAINI report (in Finnish) is available at www.sitra.fi.

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