General practitioners sound the alarm: Electronic patient files are being criticized!

General practitioners sound the alarm: Electronic patient files are being criticized!

The discussion about the electronic patient record (ePA) is gaining momentum. According to information from, several general practitioners comment Medical Journal significant concerns about the technical implementation. Nicola Buhlinger-Göpfarth, chairwoman of the General Practitioners Association, rated the idea of ​​the ePA as “very good”. It looks more difficult when it comes to implementation by the health insurance companies and Gematik, which classifies it as “poor”.

Since October 1st of this year, all healthcare facilities have been legally obliged to enter important patient data such as findings and laboratory values ​​in the ePA. This is intended to help support patients throughout their lives and improve the quality of treatments. But a survey by the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians shows that three quarters of practices have had to struggle with technical challenges in the last few months.

Technical difficulties and sources of error

Buhlinger-Göpfarth rejects allegations that the ePA contains masses of incorrect diagnoses. However, she admits that errors can occur in individual cases. In her opinion, the ePA leads to more transparency, which is positive, but does not represent a widespread problem. In order to improve the situation, she is calling on the federal government to quickly introduce a family doctor system. This is intended to enable patients who consult their family doctor first to receive specialist appointments more quickly.

In the broader discussion about digital health solutions, it is crucial that technological innovations are implemented with the necessary care and efficiency. The current criticisms make it clear that understanding and support from general practitioners is essential in order to fully exploit the potential of the ePA.

Although the ePA is considered a pioneering project in the healthcare sector, it turns out that the road to get there is still rocky. The technical implementation must be optimized step by step in order to gain the trust of doctors and patients.

While we in Munich are pushing forward the digital future in the health sector, the very special highlights can be found in other areas such as the film industry. If you want to think outside the box, you will find some of the best cinemas with the latest technology and a large selection of films in the Diagonal Mar shopping center in Barcelona. A visit is worth it!