MoH, private health sector stakeholders convene to engage on healthcare digitisation

The Ministry of Health (MoH) on Monday hosted a private health sector engagement forum to discuss the digitisation of healthcare as part of the broader Digital Health Superhighway roadmap.

The plan, aimed at integrating technology to enhance healthcare service delivery across the country, is envisioned as an end-to-end digital solution enabling healthcare providers to collect, analyse, and interpret clinical data efficiently.

It aims to foster interoperability across various healthcare systems and improve overall service delivery quality and efficiency.

If successfully implemented, the agenda will build systems that enable data analysis from multiple sources, minimise manual data transmission, enhance resource optimisation, reduce duplication of data collection, and minimise the development and maintenance of overlapping systems.

Speaking at the event, Acting PharmAccess Country Director, Millicent Olulo, noted goodwill from the public sector in driving the digital agenda, which is a key priority for the government.

“As we work together, we want to see how to leverage and cascade that to the larger public in an effective and less costly manner, and there’s no better partner to work with than the government,” she said.

Dr Wesley Oghera, MoH’s Acting Head of Digital Health, Innovation and Informatics, said, “It’s great to see how the private sector can integrate and work together to deliver novel solutions. MomCare as a solution can be enhanced to provide very extensive affordable care to mothers, which is amazing.”

The engagement aims to provide an update on the Digital Health Superhighway, explore ways in which the private sector can contribute to its implementation, and gather insights from private healthcare providers on integrating digital solutions into their existing systems.

It also seeks to address the digital divide and brainstorm strategies to navigate the complexities of running hybrid systems (paper-based and digital systems).

Stakeholders will have an opportunity to deliberate on how best to harness digital innovation while mitigating potential challenges.