The Social Insurance institution of Finland (KELA)
As a student in a higher education the Social insurance institution of Finland provides me the services of the Finnish Student Health Service (FSHS). There is an annual fee that must pe paid for each term, but the fee is quite small comparing all the good services that FSHS offers for students. I am studying and fulltime working at the same time so I don’t get any financial aid for students that KELA provides full time students. For now I live with my husband who is also working fulltime job so we don’t need or we are not legitimate any benefits that KELA provides because our economical situation is good. We travelled quiet a lot before COVID-19 pandemic so we both own European health card that makes health care easier if something happens in abroad.
OmaKanta
I accessed to OmaKanta with my Bank ID. OmaKanta is highly protected page so you will have to identify yourself to access OmaKanta. At OmaKanta I can see all my patient history and all the electronic prescriptios that has given to me. I can also find an COVID-19 vaccination certificate there and see possible laboratory tests. With OmaKanta I can request to repeat prescription and browse my personal wellbeing data.
Keva
I identified to Keva and used pension counter. That page was new for me and it was quit surprise that my lowest pension age is 68. There was no choice to retire age 63. Of course there is option to be at early retirement and be at part time job at the same time but then amount of my pension is ether 50% or 25% of my total pension. If I retire at age 68 my pension will be little bit under 2000€ per month. I am little bit sceptic of this pension system, I think our society doesn’t cope with all the growing debt and world crises so I believe I am not seeing those pensions. That’s why it is good to have savings also for the future.
Digital shops
I have used global digital shops like Booking and Trivago when I have evaluated different accommodations or flights. I usually do quiet large evaluating and sometimes I can find cheaper prices direct from accommodation’s own sites. This happens usually when we are travelling in Finland. I have noticed that those global sites are using artificial intelligence so you will have to change browser or even device if you don’t want that the prices grows. Especially when you use local services and accommodation’s own pages you will get better service and your money goes direct for the service provider. I remember those times when we booked abroad trip direct from the Aurinkomatkat office and selected hotel and other services with customer servant but those days are over. Everything is at the Internet now, it makes things easier but otherwise also may feel difficult for older people.
One application of my own field
I am working now as a preschool teacher and the main application in my work is Edlevo. Parents use Edlevo to book their child’s daily daycare and we modify our working schedules according to them. Every day we clock in and clock out our children and parents get daycare expenses according to the actualized daycare times. Main idea is good but there is weekly struggles because Edlevo is not working right and parents can not book fluently daily daycare times. Our boss also sends information via Edlevo but workers don’t always know what kind information parents have received. Workers don’t see Edlevo’s information pages so that is quiet challenging. We use Edlevo application with our work cellphones but if we want to do modify some child’s daycare time we have to log in computer application that takes time. It would be great if there would be one app that works well only in cellphone and also workers can see what information parents are receiving.
Digitalization and digital gap
Digitalization has grown rapidly and constantly we will hear about new digital innovations or applications that makes our life easier. I think this digital development makes difficulties especially for elderly people. Of course you can’t do generalization that just elderly people estimate digital applications difficult but I think most of them if we compare their digital skills to younger people. Now days even more services are at Internet and face to face customer service is more rare than it was like ten years ago. You will have to find the information that you are looking for at the Internet and customer service is about chat and phone services. I think that lack of time, tiredness and hurry make information searching more difficult and not everyone has enough resources to search information independently. I have seen that people who don’t have enough skills to use Internet or digital apps have prejudices and even fears towards digitalization. Now days many municipality’s health care services or information of them are at Internet and the new welfare concern expands services and makes information searching more important. If you don’t have enough skills or resources to use new applications or welfare concern’s websites there will appear digital gap between you and the others. My thesis will bring out how digitalization could help people to reach different services and what kind of digital features serve people best.
Digital competences
I did digital competences test and test results show that biggest competence that I have is knowledge of how to keep mental and physical health stable everyday life surrounded by technologic and media. I am sensitive person and easily get migraine if I work too long via computer. I have also very lively imagination so movies and series easily come to me dreams because I empathize too much with them. I also have quiet good competence to search information and keep my self safe at the Internet. All those things that depends on device’s features and problem solving are difficult to me. I have also no skills to create media or photoshop pictures via laptop. I think also own interests make a big role in this, because I have never been interested to learn those things.
Self adjustment
I learned in this task how wide digital world can be. There are so many digital solutions to help our daily life but I think that most of us don’t know even half of them. Digitalization can make life easier but it can also occur isolation if somebody doesn’t have enough money or enough time or skills to orient digital world. Digital competence test showed how little I know about digital world and how much there are different things that you should know if you want to say you have good digital competences. I have often thought this world and war in Ukraine. How safe we really are and what kind of information enemies can get to harm us and what kind of safety and security things really are needed to be safe. I don’t feel unsafe but when watching things that are going on at world you just keep wondering that everything could happen.
I commented these articles:
DIGI CITIZEN – Madde´s site (savonia.fi)