Over the past few years the JDZB in cooperation with the German Federal Ministry for Health and the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (MHLW) have carried out two symposia on care services. The MHLW, which similar to Germany is planning to introduce an electronic healthcare card, has suggested the topic spectrum be widened to include the use of electronic media. The German Ministry for Health has agreed. At the conference planned for 2013 the following topics were selected for discussion: the use of electronic media for quality improvement in medical treatment and care services; the collaboration of doctors, care workers, pharmacists etc. with the help of electronic media; a comparative study of health care in regional practices in Germany and Japan.