8 July - 2022IN MY OPINIONThe 3 `I's for innovation in Digital HealthBy Dr Antoni Chan, MBChB, PhD, FRCP Consultant Rheumatologist and Physician, Associate Medical Director, Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust IntroductionThe uptake of digital health technologies (DHTs) has taken a big step forward during the COVID-19 pandemic. Due to infection control restrictions to meet in person, there have been increased interactions virtually between clinicians and patients as well as between clinicians to clinicians. There is widespread acceptance of the use of DHTs such as virtual clinics, online health assessments, remote monitoring and use of wearables by both patients and clinicians.Prior to the pandemic, the uptake of DHTs has been slow and piecemeal in healthcare compared to other sectors. The pandemic has disrupted the traditional system of interaction between clinicians and patients which up to recently has been mainly done face-to-face. This disruption has thrown up both challenges as well as opportunities in the field of DHTs. Turning the barriers to implementation of DHTs into solutions is key to long-term spread and sustainability of the innovation to improve patient care. Innovative DHTs can be a double-edged sword in helping the delivery of healthcare, they can also be a hindrance and frustration if not implemented carefully. For this, I believe that the three `I's for innovation are helpful for successful implementation of DHTs.The three `I's are Integration, Interoperability and Interaction.IntegrationElectronic healthcare records (EHRs) have been the focal point where data is recorded for medical encounters. This is where important information such as patient demographics, medications, investigations and treatments are recorded. As healthcare is spread across various sectors, there is an increasing need to have integrated healthcare reports. With digital systems in different settings and locations, we need to be able to connect with each other with a smooth transfer of information. The key focus is on data sharing. This would ensure that the patient can travel to different centres or locations and see different specialists without any data being lost. The data also Dr Antoni Chan
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