Seven questions and answers about France’s new online health space

France’s new online health space, Mon espace santé, launched on February 3, providing a portal through which patients and their doctors will eventually be able to view their whole healthcare history.

Letters and emails are still being sent out with activation codes allowing people to register their online account at MonEspaceSante.fr

Read more: New online health space: What it changes for residents in France

Mon espace santé can only be accessed by the person themselves and healthcare staff who have permission. If you are not capable of giving your consent, healthcare professionals will be able to access your records in the case of an emergency.

You can also choose to only make specific documents visible to others if you wish.

You will be able to see who has logged into your profile and will be notified on the first occasion that someone else views it, and so any suspicious activity can be flagged immediately.

It is possible to opt out of the service up to six weeks after you receive your activation code, by logging into Mon espace santé or by calling 34 22.

What information is displayed in your profile?

Mon espace santé will initially display your vaccination and reimbursement history. However, over the next 18 months, healthcare professionals and Assurance maladie will have to upload all of their patients’ records, including past test results, medications and prescriptions.

It will also be possible to include in the records someone’s habits with relation to smoking, drinking and exercise, their height and weight and the name of their usual doctor or nurse.

In addition, you will be able to store information about your blood type, allergies, treatment plans and wishes with regards to resuscitation.

What other services does it offer?

Your digital medical records will be accompanied by a messenger service which will enable you to communicate with your doctor or nurse. However, these exchanges can only be initiated by your healthcare team.

A calendar tool will also enable you to manage and receive reminders about your appointments.

From 2023, patients will be able to view images of tests such as MRI scans and x-rays.

Doctors will also be able to ask patients to sign documents electronically via Mon espace santé.

How will it help health professionals to provide the best treatment?

Mon espace santé is designed to facilitate dialogue between doctors and their patients, who will no longer have to bring their records along to appointments or store them on the online Dossier Médical Partagé, which is now being phased out.

This will hopefully mean that no important pieces of information get lost, and that healthcare professionals have a full picture of their patients’ history at their fingertips.

It will also enable doctors and other healthcare professionals to communicate with their patients through a secure space rather than via email, reducing the risk of information being stolen.

Can you edit information entered in your records?

If you have uploaded the information yourself you will be able to modify them.

Otherwise, it will be up to the health professional who entered the details to change them if an error has been made.

Can you share your details with anyone else?

Parents are entitled to access their minor children’s records as long as they have proof of identity.

From next year, it will also be possible to nominate a relative or friend to manage your account for you, for example, if you are elderly and struggle to use the internet.

Parents and relatives appointed to manage their family member’s account can request the deletion of the records contained within.

It will also be possible for help teams from CNAM or equivalent organisations to access your details if you need their help to close your account or opt out of the scheme.

Will your details ever be passed on to third parties?

Mon espace santé’s primary objective is to help people to stay in control of their health.

Some anonymous information will be used for statistical purposes, but these will only be in relation to people’s use of the service, with the aim of improving ease of access.

Health-related information can only be accessed by you and those who have your consent.

Can you delete details from your Mon espace santé records?

Yes. You can delete individual details by logging into your profile and erasing them from your records or messenger history.

You can also delete your whole account, although your information will be stored for 10 years despite becoming inaccessible to you and your doctor.

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