REGINA - A new feature has been added to MySaskHealthRecord accounts to provide Saskatchewan residents with information about surgical procedures.
MySaskHealthRecord now has a Surgical Procedures feature that can be accessed on its accounts. People who have a MySaskHealthRecord account can now see information on upcoming surgeries, including the date and time of scheduled procedures, the name of specialist or surgeon, the name of the procedure, the location, and the status of the procedure. It can also contain information on surgical procedures performed since 2018 onwards.
The feature will do such specific things as notify people if they are on the waitlist or notify you if you have been scheduled, as well as the provider or location. It does not go so far as to provide pre-surgery preparations, such as what not to eat in advance and so on.
This feature will be accessible both on the online website and also via the app for those with a MySaskHealthRecord account. Patients will also be able to get push notifications.
MySaskHealthRecord has already been in place online since 2019 and up to now had been the go-to site for people to access lab results, see their immunization and prescription history, and access medical imaging reports, among others. The app was added last May, 2023.
MySaskHealthRecord saw a particular spike in users during the pandemic as a place to find vaccination information. Up to now, over 693,000 have signed up at www.ehealthsask.ca/mysaskhealthrecord, according to the province.
This latest feature was developed at a cost of $1.3 million and is being touted as a first in Canada for providing this sort of information on upcoming surgical procedures online. It is also being touted as allowing people to further take their health into their own hands.
"MySaskHealthRecord is a valuable online resource that puts our important personal health information right into our hands," Mental Health and Addictions, Seniors and Rural and Remote Health Minister Tim McLeod said. "This increased access for patients will support better informed discussions between the patient and their care provider."
“We are very very excited about the addition of this information to MySaskHealthRecord,” said Paul Maindonald, vice president of digital services at eHealth Saskatchewan. He said “we’re one of the leading jurisdictions to share a broad base of clinical information to patients.”
He said over the past ten days over 390,000 surgical procedure records have been loaded into the MySaskHealthRecord accounts. More health records are being added every day as surgical information is added.
The initial indication is patients should appreciate the additional information on MySaskHealthRecord.
"Easy access like the location and type of surgical procedure means patients can track all of those details while preparing for surgery," said Patient Family Partner Wendy Kopciuch. "We can come to medical appointments well informed and ready to be active partners in our own care. MySaskHealthRecord continues to be a valuable tool for Saskatchewan residents."
