Qatar participates in session on digital health

Geneva: Qatar participated in a ministerial session on digital health, organised by Switzerland on the sidelines of the 77th World Health Assembly, cu...

Geneva: Qatar participated in a ministerial session on digital health, organised by Switzerland on the sidelines of the 77th World Health Assembly, currently being held in Geneva. Minister of Public Health H E Dr. Hanan Mohammed Al Kuwari represented Qatar at the ministerial session.

During the session, H E Dr. Hanan Mohammed Al Kuwari reviewed some of the notable progress and pioneering projects in Qatar related to implementing innovative digital solutions to improve healthcare delivery. 

This includes working to exchange and share health information in a secure and unified manner by healthcare providers in Qatar, especially through the project “Qatar Health Information Exchange Platform,” in addition to using digital solutions to enhance patient safety, standardise care, and improve patient experience, taking into account ensuring patient consent regarding data sharing and governance. The Minister pointed to the work to harness artificial intelligence and machine learning in the Qatar Health Information Exchange Platform, national solutions, and patient applications, indicating that digital health helps make healthcare preventive, personal, and empowering.

She said these initiatives are of great importance in achieving the Qatar National Vision 2030, Third Qatar National Development Strategy (NDS3), and the national health strategy. The session saw the participation of ministers and officials from a number of countries, during which experiences and expertise in the field of digital health were reviewed, and strengthening international cooperation in this field was discussed.

The WHO has approved a global strategy on digital health 2020-2025, as digital health is considered a proven tool to accelerate the achievement of health outcomes leading to achieving universal health coverage and health-related sustainable development goals by 2030. Digital health interventions contribute to improving healthcare in general.