A group of Regional Youth Champions from our 2023-24 cohort have developed recommendations for national policymakers to advance resilient, inclusive and responsive digitally integrated health systems, drawing on their experience supporting DTH-Lab’s Digital First Health Systems (DFHS) research and consultations.
Introduction
In the rapidly evolving landscape of healthcare, digital first health systems (DFHS) are emerging as a transformative model. DFHS prioritizes the integration of digital technologies into every aspect of health service delivery, aiming to improve accessibility, efficiency and responsiveness. By embedding digital tools at the core of health systems, DFHS promises to enhance universal health coverage, particularly for vulnerable populations. This approach is crucial for addressing the diverse needs of today’s populations, including young people who increasingly turn to digital solutions for health information and services. Embracing DFHS enables countries to build resilient health systems, streamline service delivery, and ensure equitable access to care.
DTH-Lab’s work on DFHS is pivotal in advancing this vision. Responsible for spearheading innovation in digital first approaches, the workstream focuses on designing health systems that are digitally integrated and tailored to the needs of young people globally. Through partnerships, research and consultations with global youth networks, we are working to ensure that the priorities of young populations are reflected in the development of digitally-enabled health systems.
Through our role as Regional Youth Champions, we have helped to shape DTH-Lab’s research agenda and organized consultations with other young people on the development of a comprehensive blueprint for DFHS. This set of recommendations for national policymakers on enhancing DFHS have emerged from our own expertise and experiences, as well as our interactions with youth across the globe. Collectively we hope to advance the vision of a digitally integrated health system that is resilient, inclusive, and responsive.
Read our collection of essays outlining our priorities for Digital First Health Systems
Key Insights and Recommendations
To create DFHS that meet the needs of all citizens, today and into the future, we recommend that national governments and other stakeholders prioritize and scale up investment in the following ten areas:
1. Addressing digital illiteracy: bridging the knowledge gap
Digital illiteracy remains a substantial barrier to achieving the full potential of digital health technologies. We recognize two distinct but interrelated literacy challenges: basic digital literacy and basic health literacy. Without addressing these foundational skills, the transition to DFHS will remain fragmented and unequal, excluding the very populations who stand to benefit most.
2. Enhancing accessibility of healthcare services: bridging the gaps
DFHS holds the promise of addressing deep-rooted inequities in healthcare access. For rural, remote, and underserved populations, digital health solutions provide the potential to bypass geographical and economic barriers. However, national governments must take deliberate steps to ensure these benefits are equitably distributed.
3. Empowering Young entrepreneurs: cultivating the next generation of innovators
The future of digital health lies in the hands of the next generation of entrepreneurs and innovators. To foster creativity and drive digital health innovations, national governments must play an active role in supporting young talent.
4. Preserving human touch in digital health: balancing innovation and empathy
While technology can enhance efficiency, it must not come at the expense of the human connection that defines quality healthcare. The digital first health model must carefully balance the integration of technology with the human touch that remains essential for patient care.
5. Formulating national digital health policies: a blueprint for inclusivity and sustainability
National digital health policies are essential to building equitable, inclusive, and sustainable DFHS. The following priorities offer a focused approach to policymaking:
6. Promoting continuous innovation and improvement: a pathway to excellence
Digital health systems must evolve in response to new challenges and opportunities. Governments should actively promote a culture of continuous innovation, where healthcare professionals, technologists, and policymakers collaborate to drive advancements.
7. Investing in core digital infrastructure: building the backbone of DFHS
For digital health to thrive, robust and scalable infrastructure is non-negotiable. Governments must make strategic investments in the core infrastructure required to support a DFHS, ensuring that this infrastructure is both future-proof and inclusive.
8. Building capacity through training and education: empowering the workforce
A successful DFHS requires a digitally fluent workforce. Governments must focus on building capacity through comprehensive training programmes that empower healthcare professionals, technologists, and administrators to embrace and excel in digital health.
9. Ensuring robust data privacy and security: protecting patient trust
As healthcare becomes increasingly digitized, the security of patient data becomes paramount. Governments must implement stringent data privacy and security measures to protect sensitive health information and maintain the trust of citizens.
10. Engaging communities and fostering inclusivity: designing systems for all
A truly digital first health system must be inclusive by design, ensuring that all communities, regardless of socioeconomic status, geographic location, or digital literacy level, have access to high-quality healthcare.
Conclusion: the path forward for national governments
As the global shift toward DFHS accelerates, national governments have a critical role to play in shaping the future of healthcare. By addressing digital literacy, expanding access, fostering innovation, ensuring data privacy, and engaging communities, governments can create health systems that are not only technologically advanced but also inclusive, sustainable and resilient. The recommendations outlined here provide a comprehensive framework for national governments to take decisive action in building healthcare systems that meet the needs of all citizens, today and into the future.
Nojus Saad is a health technology entrepreneur, medical doctor, and social justice advocate with 7+ years of multinational research, policy development, and social entrepreneurial expertise around digital healthcare, gender justice, and healthcare technology.
Imane Lakbachi is a human rights advocate with a background in computer science. She is the Director of Network Engagement at IYAFP, and the Founder of Concealed Narratives; a local youth-led initiative using digital advocacy and storytelling to raise awareness around women and girls issues in Morocco.
Yifan Zhou PharmD, ACPR, is a pharmacist in Canada, where she practices both in the industry and hospital. As the immediate past Chairperson of External Relations at International Pharmaceutical Students’ Federation (IPSF), she managed over 20 partner and sponsors relations.
Inês Viva’s medical journey spans clinical medicine, research, and consultancy in various esteemed institutions. Her leadership qualities are evident from her tenure on executive boards of NGOs affiliated with WHO and the UN such as the International Federation of Medical Students’ Associations.
Caroline Knop is a medical student at Charité Berlin with a strong interest in the digital transformation of health. She served as National Public Health Officer of the German Medical Student’s Association 2022/23 and was part of the International Federation of Medical Student’s Associations delegation to the 76th World Health Assembly in Geneva.
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Healthcare Technology | Social Entrepreneurship | SRHR | Digital Transformation | Community Psychology
Nojus Saad is a health technology entrepreneur, medical doctor, and social justice advocate with 7+ years of multinational research, policy development, and social entrepreneurial expertise around digital healthcare, gender justice, and healthcare technology.
Dr. Nojus is the President & CEO of Youth For Women Foundation, where he has positively impacted over 5600 youth and women in 59 rural, refugee, and underserved societies across Iraq, India, and France.
Vice Chair of PMNCH at the World Health Organization, Saad represents the institution and contributes to researching global health policies at the annual WHO’s Global Conference on Health Promotion, UN Commission on Status of Women, International Aids Conference, and the IAS Conference on HIV Science.
Dr. Nojus serves as an expert adviser to Bond UK, where he consults the UK government’s international development sector around digital health investments in the MENA. He also co-chairs the Youth Leadership Council at the Global Fund for Children (GFC), where he shapes the GFC’s global research & innovation strategy.
Saad is the former United Nations ambassador of the Internet Governance Forum, and a senior Digital Policy Fellow at ICANN; where he’s innovating technology enterprises for UHC, developed global DNS policies, and strengthened digital literacy among the most vulnerable.
Youth Empowerment | SRHR | Digital Advocacy | Human Rights | Sustainable Development
Imane Lakbachi is a human rights advocate with a background in computer science. She is the Director of Network Engagement at IYAFP, and the Founder of Concealed Narratives; a local youth-led initiative using digital advocacy and storytelling to raise awareness around women and girls issues in Morocco. Imane is also a Youth Reference Committee Member at the African Union, one of the Co-chairs of the Digital Experience Sub-Committee at PMNCH, a CEE Fellow at IREX, a Generation Democracy Member at IRI, a Women Deliver Young Leaders Program and Fora’s Global Summit Alumna and a Diana Award Winner 2022. Imane is incredibly passionate about sustainable development and is working with international NGOs, civil society organizations, and foundations on meaningful adolescent and youth engagement.
Innovation | Digital Health | Public Health| Climate Change | Meaningful Youth Engagement
Yifan Zhou, PharmD, ACPR, is a pharmacist in Canada, where she practices both in the industry and hospital. As the immediate past Chairperson of External Relations at International Pharmaceutical Students’ Federation (IPSF), she managed over 20 partner and sponsors relations. She has also represented the Federation at more than 10 high level international meetings, where she delivered statements, interviewed, and advocated for public health, climate change, digital health, and meaningful youth engagement.
Yifan is currently the President-Elect of IPSF, where she hopes to continue advocating for 500,000 pharmacy students and recent graduates around the world.
She was the past Executive Co-Chair of IMAGINE Clinic, a student-run clinic that serves marginalized community in Toronto. During the pandemic, she led a team of 30 executives to transform the walk-in clinic into a virtual clinic to continue providing care. The clinic also offered physical space, computer and internet access to bridge the gaps in access for its patients. Yifan also developed an automated flu form for a pharmacy technology company, which served over 700k Canadians during the pandemic.
Universal Health Coverage | Digital Health | Geopolitics | Policy
Inês Viva’s medical journey spans clinical medicine, research, and consultancy in various esteemed institutions. Her leadership qualities are evident from her tenure on executive boards of NGOs affiliated with WHO and the UN such as the International Federation of Medical Students’ Associations. Through these platforms, she has made significant contributions to policy drafts and has been a pillar in healthcare student capacity building, focusing on Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Her impressive communication prowess was further showcased during her recent Bluebook traineeship at the European Commission, where she delved into pharmaceutical legislation and access to medicines. At present, Inês Viva’s contributions are enriching the OECD, as she zeroes in on the critical subject of Health systems resilience.
Global Health | Digital Health | Public Health & Prevention | Meaningful Youth Engagement | Cultural Awareness & Diversity
Caroline Knop is a medical student at Charité Berlin with a strong interest in the digital transformation of health. She served as National Public Health Officer of the German Medical Student’s Association 2022/23 and was part of the International Federation of Medical Student’s Associations delegation to the 76th World Health Assembly in Geneva. As Co-Head of the Youth Side Program on the World Health Summit she advocates for meaningful youth engagement. Passionate about addressing the digital determinants of health, she works together with SATMED, an open access satellite-based eHealth communications platform, providing digital health services to remote, resource-poor areas of emerging and developing countries. As a participant in the International Collaboration and Exchange Program (Columbia ICEP), an international student networking and exchange program partnering over 26 major leading medical universities on 5 continents, she believes that current health challenges need to be addressed by a global approach in collaborative problem solving. Having a strong interest in research she served as Head of Public Relations during the foundation of Berlin Exchange Medicine, the first German student healthcare journal. She is a scholar of the German Academic Scholarship Foundation and has recently joined the Global Digital Health Lab at Charité Berlin.