Digital healthcare has become a fundamental pillar in the contemporary healthcare landscape. With the advent of new technologies and the acceleration brought by the COVID-19 pandemic, the healthcare sector is undergoing a phase of radical transformation.
This metamorphosis is not just technological, but also cultural, as it requires a change in the way patients and healthcare professionals interact and collaborate. In this context, Europe, and Italy in particular, are striving to position themselves at the forefront, exploiting the potential of digitisation in the healthcare sector.
Global Initiatives on Digital Health
The role of international organizations is crucial in guiding and coordinating global efforts in digital health. On August 19, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the G20 Presidency of India announced a strategic partnership, launching the Global Digital Health Initiative (GIDH) 2020-2025. The goal is to promote digitisation as a tool to improve access to healthcare, the quality of services, and the sustainability of health systems. The collaboration between the G20 and the WHO underscores the importance of a global and coordinated approach, to avoid fragmentation, ensure interoperability, and promote quality digital solutions.
The Positive Influence of Digital on Health Performance
Digitization is not just a matter of technology, but it directly impacts people. A recent study published in The Lancet Digital Health, titled "The global impact of digital health technologies on the skills of healthcare workers and healthcare workplaces", examined how the use of mobile technologies, telemedicine, and other digital tools positively influence healthcare workers' performance. The results were surprising, and the benefits highlighted by operators using digital health technologies are varied, such as:
Increased accuracy and effectiveness during commonly faced decision-making processes in clinical practice;
Reduced time required to perform tasks;
Improved productivity;
Greater access to reliable real-time data;
Enhanced learning of knowledge;
Greater ability to provide timely technical and specialized reports on activities, progress, and remedies;
Improved communication between colleagues;
Lower costs for healthcare providers, thus leading to reduced public and private spending
The adoption of digital tools has led to greater efficiency, reducing errors and improving the quality of care. Moreover, healthcare workers using digital tools reported lower levels of stress. These innovations, therefore, not only improve patient care but also the well-being and job satisfaction of healthcare workers. Additionally, digital training has allowed healthcare professionals to continually update their skills, quickly adapting to new challenges.
The Situation in Italy
Italy, with its rich history and tradition in the field of medicine, is striving to position itself as a leader in digital health. The I-Com, Institute for Competitiveness, recently presented the study "Digital support for territorial health care. What organizational models?". With this initiative, I-com aimed to deepen the state of the art and the possible evolutionary scenarios for the digitisation of the sector, with a view to a proactive approach of public health to citizen-patients and greater integration between professionals, structures, and territorial entities with the goal of improving accessibility, efficiency, and quality of care provided.
Data published in the report show that digital, in the healthcare sector, is increasingly assuming the role of an enabling factor in the reorganization of territorial care. Indeed, in 2022 healthcare digital spending in Italy reached 1.8 billion euros, an increase of 7% compared to 2021.
As anticipated by the reforms and investments related to the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR), among the advantages of digitisation is precisely the ability to more easily reach a larger number of people and bring healthcare closer to patients, also contributing to reducing access disparities and waiting times.
With an investment of billions of euros earmarked for the digitization of the healthcare system, Italy has the opportunity to revolutionize healthcare. These funds will be used to promote the adoption of the Electronic Health Record, improve technological infrastructure, and train healthcare operators on new technologies.
Conclusions
The future of healthcare is digital, and with the support of global initiatives such as the G20 and WHO, and national investments like those planned by the PNRR in Italy, we are on the right path to realizing a more efficient, accessible, and high-quality healthcare system.
But the road is still long and full of challenges, and the key to success will lie in the ability to effectively integrate new technologies with the needs of patients and healthcare workers, while ensuring security and privacy.
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