In light of on-going activities of the European Commission regarding the digital transformation of health and care in the Digital Single Market, the European Commission adopted the “Recommendation on a European Electronic Health Records Exchange Format” in February 2019. The Recommendation seeks to facilitate the cross-border interoperability of Electronic Health Record (EHRs) in the EU by supporting Members States in their efforts to ensure that citizens can securely access and exchange their health data wherever they are in the EU. Two years after its adoption, the MonitorEHR study set out to provide an overview of the current situation in the EU (plus Norway and the UK) with regard to the development of interoperable EHR systems, carried out by empirica and Open Evidence.

During the 12 month study, baseline data was collected through a comprehensive reusable online survey tool, which will allow measuring progress on the development of interoperable EHR systems in the future. The survey was conducted in all EU Member States with involvement of national representatives to the eHealth Network and, in addition, a national eHealth expert in each country. A pool of 58 independent country experts and official government representatives was identified. Expert knowledge and data was collected and descriptively presented. The final study report is not yet published and subject to EC approval.