WHO Launches a New Global Initiative on Digital Health - World Patients Alliance

Digital health is essential in modern healthcare for its potential to enhance patient outcomes, streamline processes, and enable personalized care. Its inevitability is underscored by the rapid advancements in technology, the increasing adoption of telemedicine, and the growing demand for remote monitoring and data-driven insights to optimize medical interventions. By leveraging technologies like telemedicine, wearable devices, health apps, and data analytics, digital health offers unprecedented opportunities for remote patient care, early disease detection, personalized treatment plans, and data-driven insights for medical professionals. This not only improves the efficiency and effectiveness of healthcare delivery but also contributes to preventive medicine, reducing the burden on healthcare systems and fostering a culture of holistic well-being.

On 19th August, 2023, The World Health Organization (WHO) and the G20 India presidency announced a new Global Initiative on Digital Health (GIDH) at the Health Minister’s Meeting of the G20 Summit hosted by the Government of India. The new GIDH initiative (pronounced “guide” for short) will operate as a WHO-managed network and platform to support the implementation of the Global Strategy on Digital Health 2020–2025. WHO serves as the Secretariat for the strategy implementation to converge and convene global standards, best practices and resources to fast-track digital health system transformation.

The GIDH initiative aims to bring countries and partners together to achieve measurable outcomes by:
• developing clear priority-driven investment plans for digital health transformation;
• improving reporting and transparency of digital health resources;
• facilitating knowledge exchange and collaboration across regions and countries to accelerate progress;
• supporting whole-of-government approaches for digital health governance in countries; and
• increasing technical and financial support to the implementation of the Global Strategy on Digital Health 2020–2025 and its next phase. Learn More