eGovernment and eHealth in Lithuania
This report was carried out by the Lithuanian member of the consortium, the Lithuanian Free Market
Institute, and presents the results of the research on eGovernment and eHealth in Lithuania.
First, it describes Lithuania’s government and health system and the role played by eGovernment and
eHealth within this system. Then, the major technical, economic, political, ethical and socio-cultural
factors of the eGovernment and eHealth developments, as well as the major drivers and barriers for
them in the country, are assessed. These provide the basis for the identification and discussion of
policy options to address the major challenges and to suggest R&D issues for facing the needs of the
country. The report reflects the views of the authors and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the
European Commission. Its content has been peer reviewed by national experts, ICEG EC, and IPTS.
In this study, eGovernment (European Commission COM (2003)567) is defined as the use of
information and communication technologies in public administrations, combined with organisational
change and new skills, to improve public services and democratic processes and strengthen support to
public policies. Thus, it encompasses the dimensions of public administration, democracy, governance
and policy making.
Furthermore, the vision of eGovernment in the EU for the next decade as a tool for better government
in its broadest sense should be taken into account when considering the scope of eGovernment
developments. This vision places eGovernment at the core of public management modernisation and
reform, where technology is used as a strategic tool to modernise structures, processes, the regulatory
framework, human resources and the culture of public administrations to provide better government,
and ultimately, increased public value.
The creation of public value is a broad term that encompasses the various democratic, social,
economic, environmental and governance roles of governments. Concrete examples of these roles are:
the provision of public administration and public services (health, education, and social care); the
development, implementation and evaluation of policies and regulations; the management of public
finances; the guarantee of democratic political processes, gender equality, social inclusion and
personal security; and the management of environmental sustainability and sustainable development.
eHealth is defined as the use of modern information and communication technologies (ICTs) to meet
the needs of citizens, patients, healthcare professionals, healthcare providers, and policy makers. It
makes use of digital data, transmitted, stored and retrieved electronically, for clinical, educational and
administrative purposes, both at local sites and at a distance from them. Hence the study looks into the
use of ICT in public health policy and prevention of disease, information services to citizens,
integrated patient management and patient health records, and telecare and independent living services
applications.
The Development of eServices in an Enlarged EU: eGovernment and eHealth in Lithuania (PDF)
