Health and Digitalisation at the OECD

February 25, 2017

OECD Health Ministerial

On 17th January 2017, the OECD has held a Meeting of the Health Committee at Ministerial Level on The Next Generation of Health Reforms. The discussion at the meeting included relevant developments in health systems, such as new technologies, the emergence of personalised medicine and big data. The CSISAC welcomes the recognition by the OECD of the need to develop a people-centered health systems, and also about the need to protect the privacy of citizens to harness the potential benefits of digitalisation.

Health Data Governance

At the Ministerial, the OECD released the Recommendation on Health Data Governance, developed in a multi-stakeholder approach with the participation of the CSISAC. This recommendation reflects international consensus on a set of guiding conditions for governing personal, sensitive health data both domestically and transnationally to develope knowledge-driven health systems potential of health data to improve clinical practice, research, health system management and surveillance. The CSISAC will continue monitoring this framework to ensure privacy and data protection in the development of health systems public policy.

New Health Technolgies

Also in the context of the Ministerial, the OECD released a new report on New Health Technologies. This report discusses the need for an integrated and cyclical approach to managing health technology in order to mitigate clinical and financial risks, and ensure acceptable value for money. In addition to the role of the health technologies, theĀ  final chapter of the report examines how health systems can make better use of health data and digital technologies. The chapter reviews the opportunities and risks related to health data, including explicit references and sections to the role of privacy and data protection. The CSISAC recognises the relevance of the work on health data, and welcomes the approach of the OECD in recognising the role of privacy and data protection.