Newsroom

For people living in the far north of Sweden, where vast distances are common, good and timely medical help may be hard to come by. But in the province of Lapland, a mix of modern medicine and technology is making health care much more accessible. 

Sofie Lyhammar, a doctor of general medicine, alternates in her work between Stockholm and Storuman, a municipality in the north of Sweden. Although the last census put Storuman's population at over 5000 people, the area is so large that its population density is less than 1 person per square kilometre. For some people living in the municipality, a trip to the closest hospital can take up to 4 hours by car; and this is something that Sofie’s work is helping to change.  

Bridging the distance 

It takes 10 hours to reach the town of Storuman from the southern tip of the country by car, and even longer by train, so Sofie combines on-site work with remote video consultations. “It's a very small town, I don't think any doctors live there permanently,” she says, “but technology has made it possible to provide good health care in that area.” 

Besides video consultations, Sofie and her colleagues use electronic health records and digital tools designed to evaluate laboratory results, electrocardiograms, and even conduct emergency appointments remotely. “There's a camera and a big screen in the emergency room, so I can see very well how the patient moves and breathes,” she explains. “But a video assessment without any other information may not be enough, so a nurse in Storuman can take an electrocardiogram, and I will examine it on a computer. That means I can make the same judgments as if I were in the room.”  

This approach extends to various health concerns, from fractures to skin conditions. Sofie and her colleagues try to assess patient results remotely before advising whether a trip to the nearest major hospital is necessary. If it wasn't for digital technology, the long commute to the hospital would have been a lot more frequent for the residents of Storuman municipality, many of whom are older adults and have limited mobility. 

Benefits and challenges 

While some countries in the WHO European Region are still in the early stages of adopting digital technology in health care, Sofie finds it hard to imagine Sweden without it. “I can't say much about the benefits of digital health because for me it's just a normal part of life and work,” Sofie explains. “It was a part of my education 20 years ago. I guess the only downside would be if we had a technical breakdown, but these are rare.” 

A recent WHO/Europe study highlighted the positive impact of digital tools on health workers' productivity, competencies, and mental health. When asked about her personal experience, Sofie points out the ability to spend more time with her 5 kids while working remotely as a huge advantage.  

Still, some health professionals in Sweden may struggle to keep up with emerging technologies, especially the older generations, who spent the first 30 years of their career relying on paperwork. “Training is important, but sometimes it's a matter of simply getting started,” Sofie says. “Start with the easy things, such as video evaluations. Once you are comfortable with that, try something more advanced.” 

Looking ahead 

As the digital transformation of European health systems marches forward, accelerated even further by the COVID-19 pandemic, concerns about data protection and artificial intelligence have intensified as well. But Sofie chooses to look at the future with optimism. “I'm a very positive person, who always sees possibilities,” she says.  

If anything, she hopes that technology advances even further, allowing the automation of some routine tasks. “High blood pressure is a worldwide problem. It would be great to have a simple app sending people a reminder to take a measurement and upload it. That way, we wouldn't even have to see the patients. The software can give them recommendations and we can issue electronic prescriptions. Of course, that wouldn't work for everyone, but for most people basic monitoring is enough.” 

Sofie points out that for these tools to really succeed, everyone – regardless of their area of work – needs to agree on the value added by digital tools in health. “I can propose the idea, but someone with a technical competence needs to make it work and keep it running. We are health-care personnel; we don’t have the education to maintain the technical infrastructure,” she says. “Everyone sees the advantage of digital health, but we should think about it more broadly. At the end of the day, it's not only the doctors and patients who are interested in digital technology. It's also the engineers, logistics experts, and IT professionals.” 

WHO/Europe support 

The uptake and integration of digital technology into health systems can promote more efficient and targeted health care. Equitable, patient-centred approaches are at the core of WHO/Europe’s Regional digital health action plan for the WHO European Region 2023–2030. 

The plan recognizes the need to strengthen digital literacy in the general population, with special attention to the health workforce. In addition, WHO/Europe aims to facilitate interaction between partners, stakeholders and the wider public to steer the agenda for innovation in digital health. 

In addition, the latest Regional digital health report from WHO/Europe calls for urgent investment into digital literacy and inclusion for patients and health professionals, so that everyone can benefit from digital health.