Guiding optimal development and use of digital health towards improved health outcomes

e-Health is the cost‐effective and secure use of information and communication technologies (ICT) in support of health and health‐related fields. It encompasses multiple interventions, including telehealth, telemedicine, mobile health (mHealth), electronic medical or health records (eMR/eHR), big data, wearables, and even artificial intelligence. The role of eHealth has been recognized as pivotal in attaining overarching health priorities such as universal health coverage (UHC) and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

WHO Western Pacific Regional Office is responsible for:

• Promoting and strengthening the use of ICT) in health development.
• Developing guidelines and assessment frameworks to help Member States select, adopt, manage and evaluate eHealth solutions in order to aid good governance and investment decisions.
• Providing guidance and technical support to Member States to integrate eHealth solutions into their national eHealth strategies through a coordinated multistakeholder and multisectoral approach.
• Monitoring and reporting on developments and trends in digital innovation for public health to inform policy and practice in countries, and to report regularly on the use of e-Health in the Region.
• Supporting multisectoral collaboration and coordination between different organizations with a view to improving coordinated approaches for implementing and scaling up cost‐effective e-Health solutions.