Cabinet wants unambiguous system for digital data exchange in healthcare

The government will take greater control of the introduction of electronic data exchange in healthcare. Among other things, digital exchange will be mandatory and agreements will be made about the language and technology to be used.

According to Minister Bruins of Medical Care and Sport, the electronic data exchange in healthcare has been too non-committal until now. This leads to problems, partly because GPs, hospitals and physiotherapists often use their own language and system and the cooperation is based on voluntary cooperation. “I want healthcare to quickly have access to nationally-covered and linked infrastructures,” the minister said in a letter to the House of Representatives.

As a first concrete step, the minister wants to make the use of digital data exchange mandatory in ten care processes, including youth health care, GP observation, acute obstetrics and medication. In addition, the minister wants the same information standards to be used everywhere. Part of this is that healthcare institutions are obliged to use the same concepts. They also wish to reuse technical standards where possible.

“Digitization of data exchange in healthcare is an enormous job that will take years to complete,” the minister acknowledges. The government has made 400 million euros available to put the data exchange in order. A definitive plan of action should be ready in April.