European Health Data Space can help create Ireland’s fit-for-purpose health system [Advocacy Lab Content]

Experts gathered at the EIT Health Summit for the launch of a new report ‘Implementing the European Health Data Space across Europe’, which could boost Ireland’s digital healthcare transition.

Summit delegates said the Think Tank report advocates enhanced commitment, awareness, and collaboration to maximise the European Health Data Space’s real potential.

Elaine Murray, Public Affairs Lead at EIT Health Ireland-UK told Euractiv: “This report is timely as health information policies are undergoing rapid change to develop a fit-for-purpose health system in Ireland. The Health Information Bill, put forward by Ireland’s Department of Health in April 2023, provides for the creation of both summary care and shared care records.”

Murray said: “The Irish government was recently awarded €3.6M in EU funding to support the establishment of a national Health Data Access Body, supporting Ireland to deliver on requirements such as data sharing under the EHDS.”

In addition, the Health Service Executive’s Digital Health Strategic Implementation Roadmap 2024 – 2030 is to be published in the coming months which is expected to further support EHDS initiatives such as implementing national data and workflow standards.”

Implementing the EHDS

EIT Health, part of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT), a body of the European Union (EU), launched the new Think Tank report to provide insights based on a series of 11 national roundtable discussions held throughout 2023, involving European leaders from public health, healthcare, and health data economics.

The EHDS sets out a data-sharing governance framework, designed to deliver an EU-wide system for citizens’ health data, to improve care across borders and boost opportunities for research and innovation for the benefit of patients in Europe.

The legislative proposal was adopted by the European Commission in May 2022, with political agreement on a draft legislative text recently agreed by the European Parliament and Council of the EU.

Six implementation dimensions

EIT Health’s new Think Tank report considers potential hurdles and proposes solutions under six dimensions of implementation: governance; capacity and skills; resources and funding; and data quality closing the loop, the relation between primary and secondary use; and awareness, education, and communication, towards a data-driven culture in healthcare.

The report sets out that as Europe strives to strengthen its position as a global leader in healthcare innovation, it is imperative that adequate resources and funding are allocated to initiatives such as the EHDS to drive progress and improve the health and well-being of European citizens.

Experts involved in national roundtable events highlighted that significant financial commitment is required from both the European Commission and individual member states to support healthcare and infrastructure developments.

The report advises national policymakers to commit to funding EHDS initiatives to ensure its success and maximise its impact on healthcare outcomes across Europe.

Stakeholder buy-in

Overall, the EIT Health Think Tank report provides practical recommendations for the actors leading the transformation at local, national and EU levels to ensure a harmonised and inclusive European approach.

These recommendations include setting out initiatives to ensure the buy-in and cooperation of stakeholders; concerted public awareness-raising campaigns on the contents and rationale of the regulation; and national health data access bodies to facilitate data traceability across research to foster trust in new outputs and technologies.

Jean-Marc Bourez, CEO at EIT Health said: “The EHDS is a high-stakes development with significant transformative potential, and this report provides crucial insights for those involved in its implementation […] Through collective efforts and strategic investments, the EHDS has the potential to transform healthcare delivery and drive positive health outcomes for all European citizens.”

Speaking at the launch of the report in Rotterdam, Sinead O’Connor, School of Medicine at Trinity College Dublin, and Ireland representative on the EHDS Steering Committee said: “More scientific data has been created in the last five years than in the entire history of mankind. Harnessing health data for secondary use enables us to build on the extraordinary accomplishments of our age such as connected biosensors, genome sequencing, and artificial intelligence to evolve breakthrough innovations and personalised medicine for patients.”

She added that the EHDS provides the foundations for combining our knowledge alongside our data to transform healthcare.

[By Brian Maguire | Euractiv’s Advocacy Lab ]

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