Within the framework of the 4YFN-MWC, Boehringer Ingelheim organized two key electronic roundtables on digital health, including how healthcare data can create predictive medicine and the potential of applying technology to digital solutions. illness and treat a wide spectrum of diseases.
Jordi Serrano, CEO of UdHA and founder of UniversalDoctor, made the opening presentation on the main trends in digital health and on the challenges that the sector faces, giving an intervention to the discussion boards. “In this session, the experts helped us understand how to incorporate and use digital technology to respond to the great challenges of health systems globally,” said Professor Julio Mayol, professor at UCM/Hospital Clínico and director of the Isissc innovation group; which would control the meeting.
The speakers who participated were: Daniel Prieto, professor of pharmacology at the University of Oxford; Eva Aurin, eHealth manager of Telefónica; Miguel Angel Armengol de la Hoz, head of the large data area, PMC-FPS, Ministry of Health and Consumer Affairs of the Basque Country; Xavier Palomer, founder of Aemilia Virtual Café; Louis Badrinas, executive director of the Barcelona Health Hub; Angeles Barrios, Head of Public Affairs & Stakeholder Relations, in the EIT of Spain Health and Christoph Brabandt, Head of BI X Ideation & Exploration Chapter.
There are great challenges surrounding the use of medical treatments for the patient, but their benefits for improving health must also be taken into account.
Boehringer Ingelheim seeks to turn the challenges currently presented by the healthcare system into innovative solutions that have a positive impact on people’s health and contribute to the sustainability of the healthcare system. “The vision of the company’s digital health strategy aims to be a common framework to build a robust, efficient, flexible, inclusive and sustainable national health system, thanks to the ability of transformative digital technologies”, says Guillem Bruch, regional director of human pharma medicine. from Boehringer Ingelheim Global.
The pandemic has accelerated the development of the healthcare ecosystem, which has highlighted the need to increase its effectiveness through technology. Thus, digital health has emerged with a wealth of tools that have the potential to improve diagnosis, treatment and adherence, as well as monitoring of different diseases. Digital data storage, wearables, digital therapy, remote monitoring, big data, artificial intelligence or telemedicine are just a few examples.
Digital health has emerged with a wealth of tools that have the potential to improve diagnosis, treatment and adherence, as well as monitoring of different diseases.
This transformation requires several technological, organizational and cultural changes, in which all the agents of the system are involved (public administrations, care professionals and administrators, the pharmaceutical industry, patient organizations, ICT professionals, etc.). In addition, the concern of the ecosystem will increasingly include the participation of new players, such as startups and innovation tracks.
The power of delivery from the healthcare data lake
In this sense, other conference panels are focused on the opportunities that digital health data bring with them. Daniel Prieto, Eva Aurin and Miguel Ángel Armengol de la Hoz explained how the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and the European Medicines Regulatory Center have established a coordination center to provide timely and reliable evidence on the use, safety and efficacy of medicines. human use, including vaccines, from real-world health databases across the European Union (EU). The new centre, Data Analysis and Real World Inquiry Network (Darwin, EU) provides evidence of real clinical practice from across Europe on diseases, populations, drug use and effectiveness.
It is a direct and anonymous repository of raw data that, with big data processing tools, can offer valid data almost immediately, influencing the effectiveness of health care. This can influence the improvement of diagnoses and treatments, the reduction of costs, the expectation of episodes with the highest intelligence, the best resources, the promotion of personalized medicine or the application of predictive models to prevent health needs.
Miguel Angel Armengol: “We have to talk about the damage that non-communicating people do to the patient’s health”
In Spain, the creation of a large health data lake began. Although there are significant challenges surrounding the use of patient clinical records, maintaining confidentiality and security, their benefits to improving human health must also be considered. The work is already starting from them in big cities like Madrid or Malaga, according to Miguel Angel Armengol de la Hoz. “We have talked enough about the potential risk to patient privacy in data communication. But we need to start talking about the damage it does to your health.
Applied technology for digital solutions
Xavier Palomer, Luis Badrinas, Ángeles Barrios and Christoph Brabandt discussed three main aspects: the regulatory process, how it is applied in the environment and the financing of these solutions. Regarding the regulatory process, agreement is in progress in different European countries. But the challenge in Europe is the breakup and how to make the system more homogeneous. Experts agree that the German model can be applied to other countries. In addition, they established a common vision on the need to change the current model so that innovation, together with solutions prepared from the beginning, reaches patients.
Experts highlighted the need to create a common procedure for making digital solutions accessible to patients
As for how it should be applied in the environment, a common work and sustainable business model has been published that allows startups, as managers of the health ecosystem, to develop their innovation and make it accessible to patients. In this sense, he highlighted the importance of professionals to contribute to a more relevant personal health care.
Finally, with regard to the financing of these digital solutions, speakers highlighted how community and joint cooperation across the public and private sectors, as well as the political community, is essential for progress in this area. To facilitate equal access to innovation for all patients, it is necessary to create a common framework that will streamline the process of evaluating, adopting, and implementing digital financial solutions. “EIT Health is working in a common framework to accelerate the adoption of these solutions. The health initiative involves public and private agents from all over Spain to provide real solutions to all the gaps or barriers in health innovation”, concludes Ángeles Barrios.
