MyIKP is an innovative solution which gives patients simple and quick access to documentation and information about their health. The application is safe and free, and its purpose is to make it easier for users to get e-prescriptions and e-referrals. MyIKP is one of the most modern tools in the field of e-health, managed by the e-Health Centre – a long-time client of Pentacomp. Thanks to the application, patients have easy access to healthcare and the opportunity to use numerous medical services.

Nowadays, technology plays a key role in all aspects of our lives. Healthcare is no exception. Thanks  to the use of digital solutions, health services are now more accessible and easier to manage. They allow for ongoing monitoring of patients’ health, increase people’s awareness of disease prevention,  and contribute to a more effective functioning of health facilities.

The e-Health Centre in Poland is responsible for the implementation of tasks in the field of building the information society, including the organisation and proper functioning of the healthcare sector. Pentacomp has played a role in this, as for many years it has been supporting the Centre in building and creating systems responsible for the proper functioning of the healthcare system.

Our team has been involved in, among others, the implementation of key functional areas of the e-health system (P1), such as e-prescriptions, e-referrals, the Internet Patient Account, medical events or exchange of medical documentation. One of such projects was the creation of a mobile version of the Internet Patient Account.

Ready, steady, go: myIKP project

As part of the existing collaboration with the e-Health Centre and the contract for the construction and development of the e-health system (P1), the Pentacomp team worked on creating a mobile application – myIKP.

In addition to the functions available in the browser version of the system, myIKP also contains information about programmes supporting disease prevention prepared by the National Health Fund of Poland. The following programmes were added to the myIKP app, among others:

• “8 weeks to health” supporting physical activity. Sets and schedules of exercises, exercise registration and the ability to track progress were defined.
• “To the rescue”, a collection of information with videos on first aid for adults and children in emergency situations.
• “Questionnaire 40+” encouraging patients to take care of their health. After completing the questionnaire, the user receives a referral for free medical examinations.

Effectiveness of the Pentacomp team

A team consisting of client representatives and Pentacomp experts was responsible for the implementation of the project. All team members had previously worked on the pacjent.gov.pl project and have been involved in the implementation of the e-health project for years.

The project involved a group of business analysts, backend developers, mobile developers dealing with the iOS and Android platforms, testers, graphic designers, product owners and scrum masters. The Pentacomp team was responsible for the architecture of the application, the creation of communication services and the introduction of the completed mobile application into stores.

• The analysts’ role was to examine the client’s needs and translate them into functions that were then implemented in the mobile applications.
• Mobile platform developers were responsible for creating the mobile applications from scratch, their development and maintenance. They helped define the design and behaviour of the apps. They ensured the security of data stored on the user’s device and offered technical and substantive support related to the maintenance of mobile systems.
• The task of backend developers was to ensure not only efficient but also secure transfer of information. They were responsible for creating an integration layer that will enable secure data transfer between the existing e-health system and the mobile application.
• Testers were responsible for checking the correct functioning of the apps on over 95% of active devices. To achieve this goal, they used real devices available on the market. Testers also dealt with the standardisation of the mobile applications’ functioning on different platforms. This avoids mistakes and also makes it easier for developers to create applications that work in the same way on different devices.

Project challenges

Initially, the entire project team started working on the mobile application, taking responsibility for the delivery and implementation of server services needed for the proper functioning of the application. During the project, the team got divided into smaller, more specialised teams, which turned out to be more effective and allowed them to achieve their objectives more efficiently.

The teams faced several challenges. Some of the biggest challenges included ensuring the security of transferred and stored information, and implementing the registration function in the application using the country node/trusted profile. Information security experts came to the rescue, thoroughly re-examining the technical requirements. As a result, additional tools and procedures were implemented that increased the security of transferred and stored data. Thanks to a considered approach and working with experts, a high level of application security was ensured and the project was completed on time.

Successful implementation

The Pentacomp team is proud to have worked on creating the myIKP application, whose current number of installations is 4.5 million. The tool proved to be particularly helpful during the Covid-19 pandemic, as it allowed users to check, among others, the results of Covid tests, quarantine information, or vaccination registrations. The application also provides easy access to Covid certificates, including for third parties (i.e. family members or authorised persons).

Thanks to the cooperation between Pentacomp and e-Health Centre teams, a useful, safe application was created for patients who want to have control over their health, and who value convenience and access to up-to-date information.