Until now, once patients received the paper version of the L4 document, they had 7 days to deliver it to their workplace or, if they were self-employed, - to ZUS (Social Security Institution) headquarters. Delayed delivery of the leave document could lead to a penalty in the form of lowering the amount of sick or care allowance.

E-leave is automatically sent to ZUS and the patient’s employer. This is very convenient for patients, especially those who work outside the company's office on a daily basis. Sending the document electronically is safe as it can’t get lost or damaged during transport. There is also no risk of receiving a lower sick or care allowance due to not submitting the leave paperwork on time.

E-leave is also beneficial to employers who will be automatically informed of a sick leave being issued for their employee. The document is sent electronically shortly after it is issued by a doctor.

If the employer does not have access to e-leave because they don’t have a PUE (Electronic Services Platform) profile, they will not be able to receive the document electronically. In this case, the doctor must print out a copy of the electronically issued leave (e-ZLA) and the employee must submit this document to their employer.

Simple, efficient, with no risk of errors

Issuing an e-leave is much quicker than issuing a paper version and saves both the patient and the doctor a lot of time:

1. Thanks to integrating Medicover’s medical app with ZUS, the doctor has access to the patient's data in the PUE needed to issue the leave, including the details of his employer (contribution payer). When issuing the sick leave, the system ensures the correctness of the data entered in accordance with regulations.
2. The sick leave is automatically sent to ZUS and to the employer who has a PUE profile. It is also sent to the electronic profile of the patient.

44,000 e-leaves issued by Medicover

At Medicover we have been implementing telemedicine solutions in patient care for many years:

1. electronic records, thanks to which the doctor has full knowledge of the patient's health with access to his test results and opinions of other specialists
2. e-visit, thanks to which the patient can obtain quick medical advice through such tools as chat, video consultation or a telephone conversation with a doctor

Other digitalization solutions we are currently working on include e-leave, e-presc.ription and e-referral.

In June 2018 we integrated our systems with ZUS and began issuing e-leaves. To date we have issued over 44,000 e-leaves through our medical app. This solution is yet another great convenience for our patients who no longer have to go to their workplace or ZUS to submit their sick leave within 7 days while being ill. Everything happens automatically.

Electronic leaves also benefit patients who receive home visits. During such a consultation the doctor may issue an e-leave in an alternative way. This is extremely useful in situations when access to a computer is difficult.

In November 2018 we were able to successfully issue and fill the first e-presc.riptions at the Medicover Pharmacy in Warsaw. Patients who have the Internet Patient Account (IKP) do not have to use paper presc.riptions. Their electronic versions are sent to them via SMS or email.

This solution is particularly important for persons ordering presc.riptions for chronic medications, e.g. medicines for hypertension, diabetes, thyroid or contraception. E-presc.riptions save these patients a lot of time. They’re very convenient as the patient no longer needs to come to the Medicover Centre to collect the presc.ription. In addition, an electronic presc.ription can be filled at several pharmacies (purchasing each drug at a different pharmacy), without the need to make copies.

As a leader in the development and implementation of telemedicine, we understand the benefits of e-solutions for patients, but also for the treatment process itself. This is why we are constantly looking for and testing new e-health solutions.