DIGI CITIZEN

KELA

My relationship with Kela started when I was born. I got my Kela card (the Finnish social security card). At the age of 18 I rented my first own apartment. I was a student and not living with my parents anymore, so I started to get student and housing benefits from Kela. Shortly after I graduated, I got a job, and I bought my first home. Therefore, my connection to Kela ended for the years. Eight years later, we had our first baby, and we started to get money from Kela. Kela paid child benefit every month until our child is 17 years old. That is great benefit for people who have children in Finland. Nowadays I use my Kela card when I have to buy medicines or I’m visiting the doctor. I receive Kela reimbursement for certain medications and healthcare services.

Because of digitalization people use more digitalized services. I have always made all my applications to Kela via internet or smart phone because it is easier and faster. I also get help when needed and I’ve been able to follow the progress of my cases. I believe that in the future we do not have Kela’s offices as much as today because we can use Kela’s services with smart phones or laptops. Meetings can be held on Teams or the similar platform. However, in my opinion, customer service has to be still very well executed, for example by videos or chats. I think many people still need also traditional interaction.

OMA KANTA

Omakanta is a Finnish online health record service where individuals can view their medical records, prescriptions, and health information. I can go into Omakanta by strong identification with my bank credentials. I think it’s a great service that you can find all your health records at the same place, and you can use it quite easily with your smart phone or laptop. I can also see my daughter’s health records at Omakanta which is nice and practical.

KEVA

It was the first time I visited Keva’s site. I tried to log in, but it said “Keva is not your pension insurer. Would you like to proceed?” These pension things are not so familiar to me. After a quick search I found out that my pension provider is Varma. I visited their site and logged in. To my surprise, some of my information was missing, such as my email address and phone number, so I went ahead and filled those in as well. I did a little research. I checked how much pension I would receive at the ages of 63 and 68. And for sure, that was not too much 😊

ONLINE RETAILERS

The assignment included a few websites that we were supposed to compare and evaluate (eBay, Amazon, Trivago and Booking.com). In my opinion, they are only marketplaces where every kind of sellers sells their own products or services. They are just digital platforms where the real dealers can sell their items through that website. That’s why I decided to compare one of the giants in my field, Zalando.

Zalando is an online fashion and livestyle retailer. It’s one of the biggest fashion retailers online. They have a few physical outlet stores also, but the main idea is selling goods via internet. They also have marketplace services for the other companies or retailers. It is called Zalando Partner. It means that some other retailers can sell their own items through Zalando’s website. Zalando takes a little commission on every sale. However, it’s a great opportunity, for example, some smaller brands who want to gain visibility and increase volume because Zalando has thousands of visitors on their website every day. (source: partner.zalando.com)

I have used Zalando a couple of times. It’s a very modern, easy to use, reliable website and the prices are competitive. I’m not a fan of online shopping because I usually want to try or see the item I’m buying. I understand the fact that assortments are wider, and prices are lower online but still I like to shop in physical stores. What makes online stores reliable? For me, there is information enough things like how to order, shipping, methods of payment, returns, reclaims and so on. There is also a customer service where I can contact if I have some problems or questions. One of the greatest things about Zalando is their logistics. They can deliver your order within days almost all over the world.

DIGITAL APPLICATIONS AND DIGITAL CAP

Mehiläinen’s OmaMehiläinen is a healthcare application where I can book an appointment with a doctor or for examinations, view test results, communicate with a doctor or nurse, renew prescriptions, etc. It’s easy to use and it’s the fastest way to get help if you need it. I use it for myself and for my child. I’m not working in the healthcare business, but OmaMehiläinen is familiar to me for occupational health care reasons. Thats why I chose it for this assignment.

Every kind of digital apps are increasing. For most people, using them is normal, but the older population may face challenges with them. The reason might be, for example, a lack of skills. People may be afraid to use them, may not have the necessary device, or have no one to guide them how to use them. In the long run, it might lead to a digital divide between generations, where older people are left without support. That’s why I hope that, for example, healthcare services won’t become too digitalized.

SELF EVALUATION

This section wasn’t so familiar to me. I learned I must continue to work for decades. I’m not sure what’s going to happen to the whole pension system. The retirement age seems to keep rising all the time. I wonder if I’ll ever get to retire. Well, at least I’ve understood that it’s important to take care of myself and my well-being so that I can keep working for as long as possible. The development of technology and digitalization also helps with that. Huge amount of applications make things easier, for example in healthcare and working life, and they are useful tools for maintaining mental and physical well-being as well. However, I believe that human relationships and face-to-face encounters will not disappear – on the contrary, their importance will grow, because no machine or device can replace them.

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