Slovenia aims to lead European digital healthcare
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Slovenia is undergoing a major shift in its healthcare system as it implements key digital projects, including central PACS, eKarton, a National Drug Register, and telemedicine, building on over a decade of data from the Central Register of Patient Data.
The country’s company, Better, develops the core technology for this transition and is recognized by analysts IDC and Gartner as a leader in digital health platforms.
Better’s solutions are already used in healthcare systems in Greece, Ireland, Malta, Cyprus, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and prominent hospitals in Sweden and Switzerland. The eKarton system will move beyond simply collecting patient data to actively using it to guide and coordinate treatment pathways. Better has been working in e-health for over 15 years, improving on the previous system by allowing direct data input and tracking patients across all levels of care.
This unified data point allows various healthcare applications to access information and ensures consistency across the entire healthcare system, providing patients full insight into their own data and coordinating care for health professionals. Slovenia is positioned to become the first country in Europe to establish this system at a national level, with similar solutions elsewhere limited to cities or regions.
The system aligns with guidelines from the European Medicines Agency and will facilitate cross-border prescriptions within the European Health Data Space, allowing patients to fill prescriptions anywhere in the EU. While the project presents challenges in coordinating expertise and managing change, Slovenia’s size and unified payment system create ideal conditions for success, attracting interest from other European countries seeking best practices.
