71st World Health Assembly

The 71st Assembly of the World Health Organization (WHO) took place from 24 to 26 May 2018 at its headquarters in Geneva. The WHO was founded on 7 April 1948 and today numbers 194 member states.

One of the items on the agenda discussed at this year's gathering that is of particular interest to the European region was Digital Health. The delegates recognised the significant potential of digital technologies for improving public health and adopted a resolution announcing the targeted application of digital health in an effort to promote universal healthcare. Moreover, they also called on the WHO to develop a global strategy for digital health.

Digitalisation contributes to closer networking among the various healthcare providers, while supporting the holistic approach to a patient's health. The health information is collected and made available in a protected patient health record.

Thanks to digitalisation, patients benefit from faster, more convenient and more efficient processes, services, therapies and treatment options.