FAQ related to e-health services

No, the services can be used by all citizens. Being elderly is no reason not to be able to use the service – on the contrary, many older Health Village users feel that the services are very useful and necessary. The guardian of a child under 12 years of age can always act on the child's behalf in matters related to the child's care.

It is safe to use e-health services. E-health services used as part of treatment, such as Health Village's digital care pathways or viewing personal data on My Kanta, require strong electronic identification using, for example, online banking codes. Strong identification ensures that the person logging in is really you. No outsiders can see your health information.

In e-health services, you can also act on behalf of another person if you have an official permission to do so. For example, guardianship, a power of attorney or acting as a supervisor of the interests of another party give you the authorisation to act on behalf of another person. Persons over the age of 12 need to always give consent to someone acting on their behalf.

Health Village's e-health services have been made as easy to use as possible and are therefore not difficult to use. They are designed for the user together with professionals and those who are experts on the matter based on experience.

If you are using a Health Village service, such as a digital care pathway that has been opened for you because of a referral, you can contact your healthcare professional for help.

If you have any other concerns about the use of Health Village, you can get help when you contact us through the feedback channel, submit a request for help and select the option ‘I want to be contacted by email’.

If want to ask about something that concerns your own treatment, please contact your own healthcare unit or regional health services directly.

You can always keep your face-to-face appointments, even if the e-health service you use enables the treatment to be handled digitally.

Face-to-face appointments with a healthcare professional are also necessary for the treatment of many illnesses or in the maintenance of your health, and you will continue having this kind of appointments. When designing e-health services, careful consideration is given to the situations in which care or customer service can be provided online and when appointments can be offered remotely or as a chat.

E-health services are designed to support your health in the best possible way. They are often used alongside traditional health care. In some situations, they can even be used instead of traditional care, if the customer agrees it is a suitable option for them.

In Health Village's digital care pathways, all activities are carried out online as a professional follows and instructs the customer remotely. Many customers have found this to be a wonderfully easy option, because it is not necessary to see a professional face-to-face. However, if digital services are not enough, the treatment plan will be changed. The customer will never be left alone. It is not therefore necessary to use all e-health services, and it is always possible to return to traditional health care if you feel that e-health services, such as remote appointments, are not suitable for you.

At best, e-health services make it easier to communicate with healthcare personnel and reduce the necessity of travelling to the hospital and the number of paper instructions mailed to your home. For example, the Frequently Asked Questions column or chatbots may reduce the need for phone calls.

When you use e-health services, healthcare professionals are likely to have even more time to discuss issues that are important to you.

Public health care e-health services are currently free of charge to customers. The actual costs of treatment will be paid by your municipality of residence.

The information that is open to everyone is completely free of charge, and you can find and utilize information on, for example, Health Village hubs whenever and wherever.

E-health services support sustainable development in many ways.

By making routine patient care work more automatic, we can reduce the impact on the environment. For example, if a nurse, secretary and physician need to print fewer patient instructions, information letters and other patient mail, paper consumption can be reduced.

At the same time, remote care saves the customer time they would have to spend travelling to the healthcare facility, which also leads to reduced emissions from traffic.

The option for professionals to work remotely in a flexible way means that, for example, reception facilities can be used more efficiently. In the future, there will be, for example, less need for parking spaces, because more and more healthcare matters no longer require travel to a healthcare facility, since they can be handled from home.

Remote care is effective and efficient. There are many different services, and they also bring with them many benefits that traditional services have not been able to achieve.

E-health services are constantly being developed to benefit both customers and social and healthcare professionals and organizations.

Health Village's digital care pathways have been designed in a way that takes into consideration the health benefits that e-health service customers have gained around the world. Existing scientific research has also been taken into account in the planning of Health Village's digital care pathways.

Scientific studies are carried out and information is collected continuously to ensure that e-health services are as effective as possible. Many studies carried out so far are encouraging in terms of results. Studies have shown that online therapies guided by therapists, located in the Mental Hub in Health Village, are as good as the traditional treatment of depressive and anxiety disorders.

A number of scientific studies on digital care pathways are currently underway, and results can be expected in the next few years. If you are asked to participate in a digital care pathway study, we encourage you to participate. It is a valuable way for us to get more research information on the effectiveness of remote care.