The use of eHealth services promises structural improvements and benefits for the Slovenian healthcare system on various levels. The implementation of such services, however, necessarily depends on the structural characteristics of the environment into which they are introduced and the population that will utilise them. The purpose of this study was to shed light on the conditions affecting the implementation and use of eHealth services in the Republic of Slovenia. Results were acquired by sending 2,000 questionnaires to recipients’ home addresses via mail from October 2022 to January 2023 and asking the recipients to return the questionnaires filled in. The sample was determined with the help of the Statistical Office of the Republic of Slovenia; participants were chosen so that the sample was representative of the population of the Republic of Slovenia by geographical location, age, and gender. We find that a significant share of the respondents does not utilise the computer (19.6 %) or a smartphone (18.3 %); 11.1 % do not have internet connection at home. Information on health and healthcare is sought from both official and unofficial sources. Respondents would generally rather visit their doctor more often than they currently do, but are discouraged to do so by structural obstacles, such as long waiting lists. Regarding the degree of eHealth service awareness, we find age-related (the degree of awareness becomes less with age up until 60 years of age) and gender-related (47 % of men and 56 % of women) differences. However, awareness of eHealth services is generally higher than the degree of their use. Even so, 33.3 % of all respondents do not regularly use any eHealth service, whereupon we studied the reasons why they never began to use various services, as well as reasons why they ceased to use them. We highlight the relative success of the zVEM portal for accessing data related to one’s own health (used by half of the respondents aged under 50). We find that phone calls and e-mail are two of the most common ways of telecommunication with one’s physician, especially in users aged over 30; however, the option of telecommunication with one’s pharmacist remains neglected. We conclude that the implementation of new eHealth services on the state level must necessarily look to their users’ material conditions and, to achieve successful use of these services without increasing health inequalities, maintain basic conditions regarding the most underprivileged social groups.
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