Priorities for the development and deployment of the Kanta Services

The Kanta Services’ data content and interfaces will be gradually updated based on the international HL7 FHIR standard. This will help client and patient information system providers to improve the availability of Kanta data in local systems. 

• It will be easier to develop local client and patient information systems, and it will be possible to make data shared through the Kanta Services available to social welfare and healthcare professionals in a more real-time and accessible format. This will improve the quality of services and allow for quicker treatment decisions.
• Data in the Kanta Services will be more structured than before and stored in real time, promoting the use of nationally consistent data in research, statistics and knowledge-based management.
• The first new HL7 FHIR content will be healthcare appointment information and functional capacity information shared by social welfare and healthcare services.

The EHDS (opens in a new window) will bring changes to rights regarding the processing of patient data. The changes will affect the rights of both healthcare professionals and patients. Changes will also be made to patient information systems. 

• Kanta Services will participate in the national preparation under the direction of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health and in the international preparation at the EU level. This includes planning and preparing for expanding the rights of citizens in Kanta.
• The most flexible and cost-effective regulation-compliant solutions possible will be enabled in the Finnish social welfare and healthcare information system sector.
• The technology of the Kanta Services will be developed to support the regulation so that Finns can benefit from the seamless transfer of information at an international level.
• MyKanta and its mobile app will be developed so that citizens can easily manage their health data in accordance with the EHDS regulation.
• Wellbeing services counties will be provided with assistance so that they do not have to deploy the same things in their own systems.
   

The data in the Kanta Services are also used in knowledge-based management, research, and in official tasks.

• New data content in the Kanta Services will be refined to support knowledge-based management and research
• Data will be submitted to parties with the rights to information
• Data products such as reports, statistics, and indicators will be developed in accordance with information needs to monitor service activities, production and deployment.​​​

The visibility and traceability of pharmacotherapy will be improved for citizens, healthcare professionals, and pharmacy professionals. Priority will be given to recording and sharing medication data in outpatient care. 

• The renewed Query and forwarding service will be implemented during 2025. 
• The service can be used to transfer certificates and statements stored in the Kanta Services to the authorities who need them.
• Processing by the authorities will be streamlined, operational efficiency will be improved, and the transfer of data will be accelerated, which will also contribute to cost savings.

To support the continuity of care and services, a solution based on the Client Data Act is being prepared at a national level, and will enable the transfer of client data across sector boundaries via the Kanta Services. The identified benefits of the solution include:

• The client will be able to specify which of their data may be shared by healthcare services with social welfare services and vice versa (consent to data sharing).
• In the future, social welfare and healthcare professionals will be able to use the data produced by both social welfare and healthcare service providers. 
• The change will make it easier to organise and implement services. The change will promote the integration of social welfare and healthcare services, and the functionality and knowledge-based management of service chains and entities

In the future, the client’s functional capacity data will be recorded in a data structure that is consistent between social welfare and healthcare services, which will improve the flow of information between social welfare and healthcare services and the continuity of care and services.

• Functional capacity data entries and overall assessments of clients’ functional capacity will be recorded in a consistent and structured manner. The data will be stored in the Client Data Repository for Social Welfare Services and in the Patient Data Repository for healthcare services, via both of which all social welfare and healthcare service organisations can access the data. Functional capacity data will also be displayed in MyKanta. 
• The quality of care and services will be improved through consistent, structured recording which will give professionals more time for client work. The monitoring of the methodicalness and impact of care and services will improve when an assessment of longer-term changes in functional capacity is available.
• When information on changes in functional capacity is available, we are also able to obtain information on the effectiveness of services. Recording data and making it available across sector boundaries will make operations more efficient and facilitate cross-sector cooperation.

• Ensure that citizens are equally included in care and secure the continuity of care and data through the development of MyKanta. 
• Enable better client participation in care by updating MyKanta to be client-centred and responsive to client needs.
  • Update online services to meet customer needs: making it easier to handle affairs in the service.
  • Provide citizens with a modern way to use MyKanta in the form of the MyKanta mobile app, which is due to be launched in the spring of 2025. The app will make it easier for a person to find their information and identify themselves in the service  
  • Provide citizens with notifications on new healthcare records, such as prescription renewals and laboratory test results. 
  • Enable the smooth transition between citizens’ digital online services.
• Further develop the interface for wellbeing apps to include the functionality for acting on behalf of another person. This will make it possible to utilise patient data stored in the Kanta Services in various wellbeing apps.