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eHealth Tallinn 2017 focuses on the impact that a digital transformation of healthcare systems could have on society as a whole

19.10.2017 | 10:33

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Over 600 digital health experts from Europe and across the globe have gathered in Tallinn to exchange knowledge and share best practices as part of the eHealth Tallinn conference.

The three-day event officially opened this morning with an exclusive VIP exhibition tour and an opening political address. The highest-level representatives from the organising bodies opened the plenary: Minister for Health and Labour of Estonia, Jevgeni Ossinovski; Chair of the ECHAlliance, Brian O’Connor; and President and CEO of HIMSS, Harold ‘Hal’ Wolf.

Jevgeni Ossinovski, the Estonian Minister for Health and Labour said: “E-solutions have made it possible to bring revolution to all areas, including health. A modern healthcare system and better medical care will require the widespread adoption of electronic health information. The free movement of data, including health data, is one of Europe's fundamental freedoms and we need to find ways to move data securely, both for the individual and collective benefit." Minister Ossinovski also added: "At the conference, we focus on practical solutions that allow people to access their digital health data, control the use of the data, and allows the safe sharing of this data for treatments and for science and innovation."

Tomorrow, the eHealth Tallinn conference will also give delegates the chance to attend a live session, which will present the Digital Health Society (DHS) Declaration. The Declaration, which received numerous contributions, is a manifesto that expresses the current main challenges for the implementation of digital health and highlights the objectives and initiatives of each category of stakeholders to achieve in a collective movement.

Chair of the ECHAlliance Brian O'Connor said: “By explaining healthcare challenges and needs, we help innovators better understand the market and detect opportunities. That's why we believe that multi-stakeholder ecosystems and events such as this one are good models to achieve the large-scale deployment of digital health.”

The President and CEO of HIMSS, Hal Wolf, highlighted the importance of embracing innovation in the e-health area: “The emphasis on innovation promises to accelerate rapidly and produce exponential change in important areas including prevention, more personalised care tailored specifically to a patient’s genetic profile and needs, more efficient and proactive technology-enabled care models, more integrated and comprehensive delivery organisational designs, and additional creative technology-enabled options for effective health encounters.”

During the eHealth Tallinn conference, which takes place until 18 October, delegates will benefit from several sessions that provide in-depth expert presentations from across the globe, around topics such as ‘building citizen-driven demand in eHealth’, ‘eHealth supporting the value driven and sustainable health and social services’ and ‘eHealth as a driver of innovation and economic development’. Attendees are also encouraged to use the various networking opportunities on offer to generate meaningful global business opportunities between companies, health providers and other stakeholders.