Digital Health
Introduction to Digital Health
Seismic shift in the healthcare sector
Clear trend towards adoption of technology
THE OLD NORMAL THE NEW NORMAL + TECH PROWESS
• TRADITIONAL HEALTHCARE • DIGITAL HEALTHCARE
Hospitals, clinics, doctors, nurses have Frontier technologies are being experimented that will Convergence of Digital
delivered healthcare at the hospitals augment capabilities of doctors and hospitals Tech
• FRAGMENTED AND INACCESSIBLE HEALTH
DATA
• DIGITIZED AND ACCESSIBLE HEALTH DATA
Digital health data enable preventive healthcare, accurate
+ AI, Data Analytics
Inaccurate diagnosis with limited data and lack of predictions and effective utilisation of resources and Prescriptive Insights
+
insights (physical / disparate)
• POINT OF CARE IN VIRTUAL
• POINT OF CARE IS PHYSICAL Mitigated to contactless and remote healthcare
assistance 5G, Telemedicine,
Healthcare accessed from a physical space
Platforms
e.g. hospital, labs and clinics
• FOCUS IS ON ILLNESS
The healthcare priorities were driven by illness
• FOCUS ON WELLNESS
Embracing proactive healthcare remediation focused on
immunity, vaccination, wellness etc.
+ IoT, Data Analytics,
(ailments), more reactive in approach. Wearables
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Complex web of digital healthcare
Providing effective and quality healthcare through multifaceted effort involving a wide range of players
PANDEMIC SURVEILLANCE PUBLIC & PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS
Analyse large volumes of data to predict & Symbiotic relation between healthcare stakeholders
unearth factors impacting the lives. to study and control the spread.
CONTACTLESS AND REMOTE PATIENT CARE
SUPPORT Identify and isolate the infected
Driving social distancing through remote population, use EMR to prescribe
consultations with doctors & health workers. customised recovery plan.
Digital
IDENTIFY AND TRAIN HEALTH
WORKERS Healthcare PROTECT THE VULNERABLE
Specialised training for health workers. High risk population such as kids,
Adequately upskilled to fight the pregnant women, elderly etc. need
pandemic. appropriate care and counselling.
REMOTE HOME CARE NEW REAL-TIME PANDEMIC
Leverage EMR and IoT to diagnose and COMMUNICATION
monitor patients with mild symptoms To ensure transparency, public org. to publish periodic
Our information via. dashboards, reports, apps.
experience
and knowledge
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What is Digital Health?
According to WHO, digital health is the field of knowledge and practice associated with the development and use of digital technologies to improve
health.
Digital health expands the concept of eHealth to include digital consumers, with a wider range of smart devices and connected equipment.
The following areas are commonly understood as being part of, or related to, digital health:
● Artificial intelligence
● Big data
● Blockchain
● Health data
● Health information systems
● The infodemic
● The Internet of Things
● Interoperability
● Telemedicine
eHealth
WHO defines eHealth as the cost-effective and secure use of information and communications
technologies in support of health and health-related fields, including health-care services, health
surveillance, health literature, and health education, knowledge and research.
Health Informatics
Health (medical) informatics is the intersection of information science, computer science, and
health care. This field deals with the resources, devices, and methods required to optimize the
acquisition, storage, retrieval, and use of information in health and biomedicine.
Health Informatics vs. eHealth vs. Digital Health
Health informatics develops methods and tools
eHealth refers to delivery of health services and information through the Internet and related
technologies
eHealth + consumer electronics = Digital Health
Digital Health
eHealth
mHealth
Health Informatics
What is Open Source Software?
It is a software with source code that anyone can inspect, modify, and enhance.
Open source licenses allow the people to use, study, modify, and distribute software.
Doesn't "open source" just mean something is free of charge?
No.
Open Source vs. Open Source Proprietary
Proprietary
Open Source vs. Open source software is free to use and modify. For web Proprietary software requires companies to purchase a license.
Proprietary Cost technologies, you still need to pay for web hosting or set up While companies sell some proprietary software as a one-time
your own server. purchase, most businesses use a subscription model known as
Software as a Service (SaaS).
Open Source vs. Companies can publish open source software, but open Proprietary software companies release regular updates with new
Proprietary Updates and source is often community-maintained. Either way, you can features and bug fixes.
Maintenance expect periodic updates and patches.
Open Source vs. With open source software, you’re free to use or modify the Proprietary software comes with restrictions. You most likely
Proprietary Flexibility code as needed. won’t have access to modify the code. Companies also place
limits on the software, such as the number of users or
transactions.
Open Source vs. When you run into issues with an open source system, you’re Proprietary software companies normally have support teams to
Proprietary Support stuck searching community forums and documentation for help customers troubleshoot issues.
answers. You also can hire a developer with experience with
the platform.
Why Open Source?
Control: With an open source system, you have total control. You can change the code if
needed. You also own the system and can control who has access to it and any data it includes.
Flexibility: There are no limits on open source software. You can customize it to your heart’s
content. Also, you won’t be bound by licensing or usage limits.
Costs: Open source software is free. You’re only paying for any technical infrastructure like
hosting and the staff or contractor resources needed to build out the system.
Digital Public Goods (DPG)
UNICEF along with the Governments of Norway and Sierra Leone, and the India-based think tank iSPIRT have
jointly established the Digital Public Goods Alliance, a multi-stakeholder initiative to accelerate the attainment of
the sustainable development goals in low- and middle-income countries by facilitating the discovery, development,
use of, and investment in digital public goods. The DPGA is an effort to convene a network of partners from
different sectors that will contribute to the identification, support, scale-up, and use of software, data, and algorithms
that can advance humanity.
[Link]
Registry
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Open Source Technologies in GLOBAL HEALTH
Hospital/Clinical Systems Reporting & Information Exchange
Analytics
Health Shared
Information Health
Exchange Record
Distribution & Supply Chain Community Health Emergency Response
Open Standards
"Open Standards" are standards made available to the general public and are developed (or
approved) and maintained via a collaborative and consensus driven process.
"Open Standards" facilitate interoperability and data exchange among different products or
services and are intended for widespread adoption.
Imagine if email infrastructure was based on proprietary standards?
Standardisation and Interoperability
Would it be possible for us to interact if we spoke different languages?
Unless we can achieve standardization with terminology, technologies, apps and devices, the
goals of EHR implementation won’t be realized.
VALUES
PATIENT CENTRICITY ECOSYSTEM THINKING BUILD FOR THE LONG TERM
Healthcare has always been provider centric. We Healthcare is multi-dimensional with several We will build solutions that last for decades. In
will be customer centric. Being patient centric moving parts. One player can’t serve the diverse order to do so we will make both tactical and
allows us to channelise our energy towards needs. However, the healthcare ecosystem can. strategic moves. Our moves will not only solve
enabling health and wellness for all. We will By embracing ecosystem thinking, we will long pending systemic issues but also
think about patients even when they are not co-create solutions that will complement establish our leadership position in the
around. other solutions within the ecosystem. healthcare industry
DESIGN FOR SCALABILITY MAKE DATA ACCOUNTABLE BUILD KNOWLEDGE AND SHARE
OPENLY
Being scalable allows us to extend our footprint Data accountability is not about security and
beyond what we have imagined. We have a privacy. It's implicit. We will leverage data to We will champion knowledge sharing. We will
unique challenge in that our solutions must build personalised health and wellness make knowledge accessible to everyone so that
scale in low resource settings. Our ability to experiences that will remarkably improve it can be leveraged to better health and wellness.
scale according to market realities will overall wellbeing. The continuous churn of data This is line with our belief that technology
differentiate us from other players in the will shape customer centric innovative solutions. can enable equitable health.
ecosystem.
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