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On the eve of the new school year, the Ministry of e-Government together with the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Education and Science announced the introduction of the new electronic note apologizing student absences.

The long-awaited innovation was accepted with broad public support, and in the discussions on the topic that followed, some important topics came out for clarification.

The Ministry of Health published the most frequently asked questions and the answers that the three ministries provide. As of October 1, only the e-mail will be in force.

Is the new e-note paid?

As before, medical notes do not fall into the basic package of activities that are covered by the NHIF budget. Each general practitioner is obliged to have a price list in a prominent place in his office and determines the fee for services that are not covered by the Health Insurance Fund. Therefore, some may not charge, others may ask for 1 lev, and still others 2 or 3 leva. For each service that is paid, a cash receipt should be issued.

Can the e-note be issued retroactively?

The note is issued with the date on which the examination of the child was conducted, but the deadline for apologizing absences can be recorded retroactively. For example, if the child falls ill on Friday the 15th, and the parent takes him for examination on Monday – 18th, the note will have a release date of 18th, but will excuse the absences allowed during the illness, for example, for the dates 15 – 22 in the respective month.

Can the doctor refuse to issue an e-note if there is no Internet, for example?

The doctor cannot refuse to issue an e-note. If it is prevented for technical reasons, the note may be issued later when the review is registered. It should be borne in mind that the National Health Information System (NHIS) is also adapted for offline work and all doctors are obliged to work in the NHIS.

Can dentists issue an e-note?

Yes. Dental software is also integrated into the NHIS and this allows dentists to issue e-notes to excuse absences.

Can other doctors, for example in emergency care, issue e-notes?

E-notes can be issued by outpatient care specialists, for example, after consultation with a cardiologist, allergist, etc. at the discretion of the respective specialist. Doctors from the centers for emergency medical care (CSMP), as before, are not engaged in conducting medical activities and will not issue medical notes to excuse absences.

Are the other medical notes that are needed for school also electronic?

The digitization of the personal prophylactic card of the students is forthcoming, which is necessary at the beginning of the school year.

Are absences automatically excused when the doctor submits the e-note to the MES system?

At the time of issuing the electronic medical receipt, its data are submitted to the National Electronic Information System for Pre-school and School Education, from where they are automatically transmitted to the electronic diaries to excuse the absence of the respective student. Electronic medical notes become immediately visible to the parent in the electronic diary. The form tutor, the headmaster of the school and the parent do not need to do any additional actions. All electronic diaries used in the school education system allow automatic apology of already reported absences, as well as respect for absences at the time of their entry in the diary when a medical note is already available in the diary.

How an electronic medical note will be issued to students

How does the e-mail get from the doctor's office to school?

After filling in the outpatient examination sheet, the doctor creates the e-note (in the NIS) through the software used by him. In order to prevent possible errors, the doctor was given the right within 2 hours after registering the note to cancel it. Only after this period the data entered: (NRN) of the examination, information about the child, period of absence, etc. are automatically provided to the system of the Ministry of Education and Science, from where they reach the electronic logbook. All processes are automatic and do not require anyone's intervention.

What will it say on the e-note itself about the disease, which is why the student is absent?

The diagnosis of the student made by the medical person is part of the information contained in the e-note. In order to protect the sensitive health data of children, it does not reach the system of the Ministry of Education and Science. The information that reaches the school diary is the period in which the student will be absent from school.

Who has access to the health data in the e-note?

Only those persons who have access to the child's health record will be able to see the diagnosis made to the child during the examination. Teachers will not have access to the diagnosis, thus preserving sensitive children's data.

Students

Electronic Notes

Apologies