A new global report, “Going digital for noncommunicable diseases: the case for action,” developed jointly by the World Health Organization and International Telecommunication Union, underscores the significant health and economic benefits that digital solutions offer in addressing the growing burden of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs).
The report outlines a systematic approach to implementing evidence-based digital health interventions for NCDs, including telemedicine, mobile health applications and health chatbots. The report emphasizes the importance of expanding access to digital tools and infrastructure to ensure equitable access to quality health services.
The findings reveal that an annual investment of less than US$ 0.67 per patient could save more than 2 million lives globally and reduce healthcare costs by US$ 199 billion over the next decade. However, to fully harness the potential of digital health, the report highlights the need to build equitable, affordable and reliable digital services, particularly in a world where one-third of the population remains offline.
In Indonesia, the report can help accelerate digital health interventions, which in recent years have focused on standardizing and integrating key applications for monitoring and surveillance of NCDs, such as the ASIK (Aplikasi Sehat Indonesiaku), SATUSEHAT (OneHealth) and the NCD Information System (Sistem Informasi PTM-SI PTM).
Download the publication here.