HSE launches app allowing patients access to their health data

Hélène Troissant with her children Aaron and Ella. She found the app 'really useful'.

A HSE health app launched on Tuesday will soon allow patients to tap their phones on entry to hospitals or clinics to share their data instead of calling it out to receptionists.

This is just one of the functions the HSE pledged the app will deliver as part of long-promised moves towards a digital health system. Some €5.9m has been spent so far including on ramping up security and cyber-safety around the app.

It is being launched in phases with different levels of access being offered with each round. It is expected to be updated three times every year. For now it offers improved digital access to maternity patients among others, with a successful pilot having run at Cork University Maternity Hospital.

The app also allows for storage of digital cards including medical cards and the European Health Insurance Card. Personal information available to those logging in with a verified MyGov ID includes flu and covid-19 vaccination records.

Hélène Troissant, mother to Aaron (aged 3) and Ella (aged 2 months) trialled the app last year at CUMH.

“I was just four months into my second pregnancy, and thought this is really good, I could have used this for my first, I found it really useful,” she said.

“It kept all my appointments in one place too. So, if you lose your appointment card it’s not a problem. Everything is written down on the app. I also had a list of medicine I was taking, which was handy as I can never remember them.” 

Ms Troissant works in the tech industry and welcomed the use of the MyGov ID as well as fingerprint security systems on her data.

Damien McCallion, HSE Chief Technology and Transformation Officer said the app is part of an evolving programme which will see patients get more and more digital access to their information over time.

It will also mean doctors can more easily access information on patients, especially in crisis situations. The same security measures apply to giving other people access to vulnerable peoples’ data online as do currently exist for those accessing paper records.

The HSE health app is available in English and Irish only for now, but it is expected other languages will follow. It is also not mandatory for patients to use it and other supports will be built in for people living with disabilities for example, he added.

Health minister Jennifer Caroll MacNeill said the launch is “an exciting milestone” in the pathway towards digitisation.

“We can now ensure that every patient is provided with easily accessible health information that is accurate and trustworthy. The phased introduction of appointment notifications and reminders will make it easier for people to manage their care,” she said.

She added the app will be integrated into a government digital wallet to be released later this year. HSE CEO Bernard Gloster echoed her hopes, saying: “We see a future where our patients and the people who care for them are empowered and better informed about their care.”