Health technologies have the potential to reduce inequalities in healthcare – but only if they are designed to address underlying social determinants and are accessible to all, according to policymakers.

Access to healthcare varies greatly between EU member states, and correspondingly, the risk of unmet medical needs.

Those living in rural and remote areas, in particular, could experience late diagnosis and worsening chronic conditions as often medical examinations and treatments are only accessible in hospitals in urban areas.

Technological advances in the health field – such as telemedicine, digital records and AI-assisted medical devices – could play a key role in tackling these differences but, according to policymakers at a recent EURACTIV event, they can also pose a risk.

“I think technologies can be used to decrease inequalities, but they can also if used in a different way, lead to higher inequality,” said Croatian centre-right MEP Tomislav Sokol, adding that while being useful tools, these technologies depend on policy decisions to regulate their right use. 

He also highlighted that there are some inequalities that need to be addressed before even talking about innovative technologies in the healthcare field.

Raymond Gemen, head of policy at the European Public Health Alliance (EPHA), also agreed that health technologies must be designed to tackle inequalities and be developed with consideration of social determinants to poorer health outcomes – socio-cultural, educational, economic, environmental or digital factors.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), social determinants can be even more important than health care or lifestyle choices in influencing health.

Gemen noted the potential for technology in improving diagnosis, treatment and making the health system more efficient as well as improving patient experience.

“But my question is: For whom? We believe that health technology should be equitable, affordable and universally accessible,” he added.

Digital skills

A key way to boost the accessibility of health access is through ensuring digital skills for healthcare professionals.

As healthcare is being reshaped with telemedicine, digital medical records and AI-assisted medical devices and diagnostics, the importance of digital literacy and infrastructure is growing. 

Corinne Hinlopen, global health policy researcher at the independent civil-society organisation WEMOS, explained that healthcare workers and patients she met during her research in different countries did not only ask for technological innovations.

“[Their requests] were always accompanied by the need for soft infrastructure, professional standards, guidelines for the appropriate use of technology and many other things,” she added.

Likewise, MEP Sokol pointed out that it is important to have health workers on board when implementing new digital innovations.

“We need to be sure health workers accept these technologies and also that they use them not in print but in practice,” he said.

What is being done?

EU institutions are already working to solve these problems even if national health authorities have the last say on these matters. 

According to Sokol, member states are blocking the EU’s ambitious strategies when it comes to health, while, on the contrary, the European Parliament is pushing for more actions on health at the European level. 

“Health has always been a marginal topic in Brussels – this changed during COVID-19. We saw that there are problems like pandemics, which member states cannot resolve by themselves, even though some of them tried in the beginning,” he added.

The EU institutions also fund health innovation through some specific actions, as pointed out by Christine Kriza, policy officer at European Commission.

She highlighted the need of working together with the member states and the private sector when it comes to developing technologies to make sure they reach the patients that need them. 

“We are now talking about a European Health Union and we have seen what joint procurement can do, we are stronger when working together”, she added.

For Sokol, the situation could be improved in member states thanks to the use of the EU budget. “Healthcare and digitalisation are the main priorities so there is definitely a big possibility of solving these problems”, he said. 

But not everything can be done at the European level, he continued, adding that member states are the ones in charge of defining their priorities.

This article follows the EURACTIV-organised policy debate “Technological advances in healthcare – The key to fighting health inequalities?” supported by Fujifilm.

[Edited by Gerardo Fortuna/Nathalie Weatherald]

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