Electronic sick leave has become an alternative to traditional, paper forms since the beginning of the year. The new system was supposed to improve and accelerate health centres’ work. However, not everything works as it should.

paper sick leave document

Will the old paper sick leave be soon forgotten?

Press spokeswoman of the Social Insurance Institution (ZUS) in Białystok, Anna Krysiewicz, explains that the new system is addressed to 3 groups of people: doctors, businessmen (who pay fees) and people who have health insurance.

How does it work?

After attending to a patient and logging into the Electronic Services Platform (PUE – Platforma Usług Elektronicznych), the doctor types the patient’s personal identity number (PESEL), illness code and dates of the days when the patient should be on sick leave. Other information then appears automatically.

It’s a much faster and easier procedure. It also prevents bureaucracy – says Dr. Małgorzata Trzcionka-Eliasz, cardiologist from the Voivodship Hospital in Szczecin.

If the doctor, patient and employer are registered on the Electronic Services Platform, sick leave is automatically delivered to each one of them. If an employer does not have such an online account, the sick leave should be delivered to them within 7 days of its issue, just as the normal, paper sick leave.

Now, we have around 400 thousand employers with PUE account – explains Wojciech Andrusiewicz, ZUS spokesman.

Employers don’t know about it

Introducing electronic sick leaves obliged all the companies with more than 5 employees to register on the PUE. They had to do it by the end of last year.

The problem is that most of the employers don’t know about that – notes Cezary Kaźmierczak, Entrepreneurs and Employers Association director.

Doctors also have doubts concerning the functioning of the new system.

It requires modifications in cooperation with medical environments. For now, this system is very unpleasant – evaluates Dr. Joanna Zabielska-Cieciuch, GP.

 

Please share:
fb-share-icon0