The ADHA has been rolling out its Digital Health Strategy since 2018 and has just begun consultation on a new 5 year cycle.
National Digital Health Strategy and Framework for Action
Australia's National Digital Health Strategy - Safe, Seamless and Secure: evolving health and care to meet the needs of modern Australia
Where are we now?
Digital information is the bedrock of high quality healthcare. The benefits for patients are significant and compelling: hospital admissions avoided, fewer adverse drug events, reduced duplication of tests, better coordination of care for people with chronic and complex conditions, and better informed treatment decisions.
Better patient healthcare and health outcomes are possible when you have a health infrastructure that can be safely accessed, easily used and responsibly shared.
To achieve this, the National Digital Health Strategy is establishing the foundations for a sustainable health system that constantly improves. It underpins and coordinates work that is already happening between governments, healthcare providers, consumers, innovators and the technology industry.
The outcomes you can expect to see are covered by seven high level strategic priorities or ‘pillars’ of digital health improvements detailed in the strategy. These outcomes will be delivered to all Australians by 2022, following the Framework for Action implementation plan.
They will form part of a newly sustainable ecosystem of digital health technology well into the future.
Here is the link:
https://www.digitalhealth.gov.au/about-us/national-digital-health-strategy-and-framework-for-action
Lets took at the claims for benefit made and how well we have done:
“The benefits for patients are significant and compelling:
- hospital admissions avoided,
- fewer adverse drug events,
- reduced duplication of tests,
- better coordination of care for people with chronic and complex conditions, and
- better informed treatment decisions.
The answer here is that we have a collection of benefits claimed but no metrics that I have seen from the ADHA – basically because they don’t have them and have not apparently attempted to measure them. Do you think they would keep positive results a secret if they had any?
On the seven key strategies where are we?
Strategic priorities
1. Health information that is available whenever and wherever it is needed
2. Health information that can be exchanged securely
3. High-quality data with a commonly understood meaning that can be used with confidence
4. Better availability and access to prescriptions and medicines information
5. Digitally-enabled models of care that improve accessibility, quality, safety and efficiency
6. A workforce confidently using digital health technologies to deliver health and care
7. A thriving digital health industry delivering world-class innovation
Put like this I struggle to see a huge amount of progress on most of these also except maybe some progress on point 4.
Item 7 has clearly been a major fail with pretty much a zero contribution from the ADHA but some good efforts from the private sector (ANDHealth and the Digital Health CRC.)
What we have
here for this 5 year plan is a score that can’t be rated at more than 3/10. Let
us hope the ADHA can deliver a better outcome next time! I hardly expect these to be delivered in the next 12 months and am definitely not holding my breath!
Lastly here
is a link to a release on the new Strategy (due mid 2022) and an opportunity to
comment on the future plan. One thing we could really do with in the new plan are measurable targets and reporting against those targets.
Feel free to comment!
David.
12 comments:
Notice they want people to "think about tomorrow" . Maybe that's because the past has been a disaster and they want everyone to forget about the smouldering money pit they up to their little eyes in.
And remember, it takes more competence to get out of a mess than to get into it. There's no sign their competence has increased, in fact, who with any competence would go anywhere near them?
ADHA is too wedded to a solution that obstructs the marketplace. It is hard to believe or relate to the statements they make; they could just as quickly (and with just as little substance) be spoken by any of the cashed-up prominent EMR vendors. While effort and resources are poured into ADHA and MyHR is challenging to see how government can have standards set, implement policy and compliance to ensure standards adoption, enabling an ecosystem where clinical interoperability is a priority and the market can provide tools for any number of consumer apps to Denver personalised health records if they so wish to. Consent to used health information for research with secure research platforms would also be much simplier.
ADHA is too wedded to a solution.
Calling MyHR a solution is a bit generous. None of the states can understand what the problem is which is why they are developing their own systems.
"... who with any competence would go anywhere near them?"
That is an interesting question. Some highly competent people of whom I am aware have indicated to me, in private discussions, they would be quite prepared to 'participate' under certain very specific Ts & Cs. It is futile for them to do so unless the ADHA is genuinely interested. The ADHA only has to ask and I will arrange the 'introductions'.
"... unless the ADHA is genuinely interested"
being interested s not enough. They need to be effective. Their track record indicates otherwise. IMHO they haven't a clue but think they do. It's called hubris.
@7:09 PM "... unless the ADHA is genuinely interested"
Clearly your definition and interpretation of "genuinely interested" is a far cry from mine. Effectively changing attitudes and culture, prising open eyes and minds, and illuminating strengths and weaknesses, dissipates hubris and repositions group perceptions of reality.
After living all the versions of "National eHealth Authorities" I felt the first one was trying to do good, but lacked the domain knowledge to actually do anything. Since then I have come to the conclusion that they are just enriching Multinational IT companies as the the primary goal, because they are just not interested in fixing any real issues. Once you realize they are "Not even trying" to seek truth it becomes much easier to understand their actions. (This does not apply to individual employees who must be as frustrated as hell trying to achieve anything useful)
@7:33PM That makes sense. So unless they accept your invitation' nothing can be done.
@6:34 PM "The ADHA only has to ask .... ".
So very true. It's not hard to make a phone call. As they monitor David's blog you can be fairly more than 'one' in the ADHA will be aware of your offer. They've got nothing to lose.
They are asking via the engagement plan and surveys. I want to think that they are doing this to avoid relying solely on the views of an elite few. Sadly I believe that it will come down to the opinions of a few self-appointed experts. The trouble with design by assumption is - you assume you know what the customer wants, usually incorrectly.
Some will come to help, most to seem important, all (including me) for the money to be had, few if any with a belief it will make much of a difference.
I would be happy if the strategy stops all the investments and effort going solely into NSW. They have live conspiracy land and have little regard for anyone but themselves.
There will be two groups of respondents to the survey. Vendors and others with vested interests in the ADHA doing what they have been doing for years - playing with technology, and those with genuine problems. Probably more of the first lot than the second.
If the ADHA were serious about the strategy they should have asked an independent bodies - say the AMA or the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia - who could have polled their members. The de-identified results could then have been given to the ADHA in the knowledge that the results represented the views of health professionals.
I bet it never even occurred to them. All they will get is the same old voices peddling the same old unsubstantiated claims.
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