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The World Health Organization (WHO) has released new recommendations on 10 ways in which countries can use digital health technologies, accessible via mobile phones, tablets and computers, to improve the health of the population and essential services.
"Exploiting the potential of digital technologies is critical to achieving universal health coverage," said WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. "In the end, digital technologies are not an end in themselves. they are essential tools for promoting health, ensuring world security and serving the most vulnerable. "
Over the past two years, WHO has systematically reviewed the evidence base for digital technologies and consulted with experts around the world to make recommendations on the key ways in which these tools can be used to maximize impact on health systems. health and the health of the population.
One of the digital interventions already having positive effects in some areas is to remind pregnant women to go to antenatal care appointments and have the children come back for them to be vaccinated. Other numerical approaches examined include decision support tools to guide health workers when providing care; and enable individuals and health workers to communicate and consult on health issues from different locations.
For example, the guideline highlights the potential for improving inventory management. Digital technologies enable health workers to communicate more effectively about the state of commodity stocks and gaps.
However, notification alone is not enough to improve product management; Health systems also need to respond and take timely action to replenish the necessary commodities.
Digital health interventions are not enough in themselves. The guideline demonstrates that health systems must respond to increased visibility and availability of information. People also need to be assured that their own data is safe and that they are safe, as they have access to information on sensitive health issues, such as sexual and reproductive health issues. .
Health workers need adequate training to reinforce their motivation to switch to this new method of work and must use technology easily.
The guideline emphasizes that it is important to create enabling environments for training, unstable infrastructure, privacy policies for individuals, as well as governance and coordination to ensure that these tools are not fragmented in the health system.
The guideline encourages policymakers and implementers to review and adapt to these conditions if they want digital tools to bring about real change, and provides guidance on how to take into account confidentiality considerations for access to patient data.
The guideline also contains recommendations on telemedicine, which allows people living in remote areas to obtain health services using a mobile phone, web portals or other digital tools.
The WHO emphasizes that it is a valuable adjunct to face-to-face interactions, but that it can not completely replace them. It is also important that the consultations are conducted by qualified health workers and that the confidentiality of information relating to the health of individuals is preserved.
The guideline emphasizes that it is important to reach vulnerable populations and ensure that digital health does not compromise them in any way. This guideline is the first of many explorations of the use of digital technologies and has covered only a fraction of the many aspects of digital health.
Source: World Health Organization
The guideline is available at http://bit.ly/whoDHI
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