Patient Health Record (PHR) System

This chapter focusses on the introduction of the Electronic (EHR) and Personal Health Records (PHR) as new technological approaches aimed at standardising electronic management of medical information between the patient and its physicians, as well as among medical organisations collaborating in providing integrated medical care services. We start with the introduction of the roles and aims behind EHR, followed by the description of the applicable legal and standardisations frameworks and European activities in this area, finishing with the introduction to most common commercial as well as open-source implementations of such systems. As a conclusion we also signal ethical and privacy concerns that are relevant to using and exchanging electronic health information.