Cypriot citizens will get a new health tool on their mobile phones from November, when the first phase of the myHealth@CY app is set to go live, roughly three months from now.
The app, announced some time ago, is being developed in two stages. In the first phase, citizens will be able to search for health professionals and service providers using different criteria and filters, with an on-screen indicator showing whether a provider is contracted with the General Health System (GHS) or not.
Users will also be able to sign up for thematic patient categories, receiving updates and notifications on specific health issues based on their own preferences. This function will not include chat groups between patients, but digital information feeds from official sources.
Emergency response
Among the core features of the first phase is the Emergency Button: a digital button that lets users send their exact location without delay to the relevant first-response services, who can then reach them using the phone’s GPS function. The aim of this feature is to locate a citizen in danger more quickly and reduce response times in emergencies.
Patient history and prescriptions abroad
The myHealth@CY app will also serve as an access point for cross-border e-health services. Citizens will be able to view their patient summary and check and execute electronic medicine prescriptions issued by their doctors in countries that take part in the relevant European network.
The app will also allow users to add extra personal details, store health certificates and manage consent for health professionals to access their data. Notifications will also be sent from the National Contact Point for e-Health.
GHS integration in phase two
Full integration of GHS services into the myHealth@CY app will take place in the second phase. Once connected, GHS beneficiaries will have access to their medical history and profile, as well as the records of their dependants.
They will be able to check their active referrals and prescriptions and manage the consent they give providers to access their history. Through the app, users will also be able to receive notifications on services registered through GHS, pre-approval decisions and prescriptions nearing their expiry date.
The app will also allow users to submit queries and complaints, get information on emergency health centres, access GHS announcements, and apply to register with or change their personal doctor.
Data exchange with 11 countries
Since May 2025, Cyprus has taken part in the European Digital Health Infrastructure. This allows it to securely send and receive health data for cross-border care purposes with other European states that have activated the relevant systems.
To date, Cypriot data has been linked with 11 countries: Greece, Latvia, Luxembourg, Croatia, Poland, Ireland, the Netherlands, Portugal, Estonia, Czechia and Spain, with checks and approvals under way to connect with five more states.
Efforts are also under way to link the Health Insurance Organisation’s (HIO) platform with the National Contact Point, as well as to enable the National eHealth Authority to make institutional use of GHS data.
Through this platform, citizens can already access their brief medical history and execute medicine prescriptions issued in Cyprus in other participating EU states. Under EU timelines, by March 26, 2029, all EU member states must provide cross-border access to the patient summary, e-prescribing and e-dispensing. By March 26, 2031, citizens will also gain access through the platform to laboratory and imaging test results, as well as their discharge reports.
