Estonia has had a single patient record (SPR) system since 2008, providing clinicians with unified access and citizens with complete control over their data. As NHS England prototypes its own SPR, Estonia’s model offers both inspiration and caution, reports UK´s digital healthcare news publication HSJ.

Digital health data brought Estonia standardisation and trust, but also challenges in terms of flexibility. Public confidence was built through transparency—patients can see who accessed their data and revoke consent. For the NHS, trust and interoperability will be as crucial as the technology itself, writes journalist Ella Devereux, following the press trip to Estonia to learn more about e-Estonia and the digital health system.

HSJ in Estonia: companies offer NHS a digital roadmap

Estonia demonstrates that digital transformation is possible—but only with patient-first design, step-by-step innovation, and resilient systems, as exemplified by Estonian companies Nortal, Helmes, Migrevention, and Kodality. Read more from the HSJ article.

This content is funded by the European Union – NextGenerationEU

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