WHO/Europe has designated Public Health Wales, United Kingdom, as a new collaborating centre for digital health equity. This collaboration will play a key role in shaping WHO’s work on digital health equity and strengthening collaboration and advocacy among regional stakeholders in this area.
Inclusive digital health
A study published by WHO/Europe and Public Health Wales in 2022 found that digital health tools are not accessible to everyone in Europe equally. People with poor health, migrants and older adults encounter the greatest challenges in using digital technologies. Digital health technologies are more commonly used in urban areas and less often by people from ethnic minority groups and those facing language barriers. The research also found higher use of digital health solutions among people with more advanced education levels and higher economic status.
“People who stand to benefit most from digital innovation are often the first to be left behind,” said Dr Natasha Azzopardi Muscat, Director of Health Systems at WHO/Europe. “Only 25 countries in our Region have implemented a digital inclusion plan. We need to better understand and address the drivers of this inequity, so that we can improve everyone’s ability to access, use and truly benefit from digital health technologies. This will be at the core of our partnership with Public Health Wales.”
User needs, equity and systems thinking
As a WHO collaborating centre, Public Health Wales will contribute to technical reviews, research and evidence-gathering to support WHO’s work on digital health equity at both regional and global level. Key areas of collaboration include supporting the implementation of the Regional digital health action plan for the WHO European Region 2023–2030, identifying best practices and guiding inclusive digital health policy development.
“Health systems in Wales and across the European Region are embracing digital technologies and electronic health records to improve health and prevent illness. These tools offer significant potential, but if we overlook issues like unequal access, digital literacy and inherent bias, we risk widening existing health inequalities. By working with WHO, we aim to ensure that digital innovation is guided by user needs, equity and systems thinking, so that digital health serves to reduce, not reinforce, health inequalities,” said Professor Alisha Davies, Deputy Director of Data, Digital and Research, and Head of Research and Evaluation at Public Health Wales.
In its progress report on the Regional digital health action plan, WHO/Europe reaffirmed its commitment to expanding the network of collaborating centres to drive digital transformation in health systems. With this new designation, there are now 4 WHO collaborating centres on digital health in the WHO European Region.