HIMSS Provides Polish Ministry of Health with Digital Health Transformation Recommendations

After assessing the digital maturity of 49 hospitals in Poland at the request of the Polish Ministry of Health, HIMSS recommends the ministry focus on patient engagement, telehealth, workforce development, clinical decision support and closed loop administration processes.    

The ministry asked HIMSS in 2022 to conduct a reassessment of digital adoption in 49 hospitals. This assessment aimed to achieve three main goals: 

• Identify which IT solutions needed to be implemented to improve quality and accessibility of health services, as well as strengthen the technical potential of hospitals.   
• Understand how to integrate information technology solutions used in hospitals   
• Develop new functionalities of the Health Information System to fully implement three e-services: 
  • exchange of electronic medical documentation 
  • e-registration for online appointments 
• online orders to and from other hospitals   

“HIMSS is once again delighted to be working on behalf of the Polish Ministry of Health in assessing 49 hospitals using the international standards contained with the Electronic Medical Record Adoption Model,” said John Rayner, Digital Health Strategist for HIMSS. “The Polish MoH is one of several forward-thinking governments in Europe that have decided to use international standards to increase the level of EMR adoption in the secondary care sector.  

“By publicly promoting digital maturity assessments, the MoH sends a clear message of its intention to improve patient safety and the overall quality of clinical care. The results clearly demonstrate work in progress and a strong commitment to engaging with patients and improve clinical outcomes.”  

This is the second assessment HIMSS has conducted in partnership with the Ministry of Health of Poland. 

In 2017, the ministry worked with HIMSS to assess 33 hospitals through the HIMSS Electronic Medical Record Adoption Model (EMRAM) to identify gaps in digital adoption and areas of digital health transformation in need of further investment. As a result of its partnership with HIMSS, the ministry invested in electronic documentation, health information exchange and online orders.