Countries around the world have become increasingly interested in the potential contributions of health information technology (HIT), electronic connectivity and a health information infrastructure to improve healthcare for their citizens and to address pressing challenges from preventative care to pandemics. The Leadership in Global Health Technology (LIGHT) Initiative hosted an inaugural international summit meeting in Geneva Switzerland on May 14-15, 2004, to promote global dialogue on this topic and to build a community of international learning among both industrialized and developing nations related to the implementation of HIT, electronic connectivity, and a health information infrastructure that supports quality, safety and efficiency goals.
Participants in the Geneva LIGHT Summit included forty-seven high-level healthcare officers and executives from the public and private sector around the globe, representing 16 nations and five continents: Africa, Australia, Asia, Europe and North America. Individuals attending the summit partook in interactive discussions sharing information regarding the challenges, strategies employed, and lessons learned related to HIT, electronic connectivity, and a health information infrastructure particularly as it pertains to:
- Delivery of clinical care and improving quality, safety and efficiency
- Performance of clinical research and measurement of outcomes
- Delivery of training, medical education, and capacity building
- Conduct of public health surveillance, management and response
Summit participants offering formal presentations in Geneva provided:
- A healthcare system and financing overview
- A description of current HIT adoption, electronic connectivity, and health information infrastructure progress
- An overview of key national and/or regional projects where eHealth and/or IT has had impact on quality, safety or efficiency
- Areas where success has been achieved and an overview and key success drivers
- Key barriers faced in the development and/or enhancement of the electronic health infrastructure
Participants also gave a high-level overview of national strategy (if applicable) in each of the following areas:
- National leadership and governance strategies
- Upfront funding and ongoing financing vehicles to assure sustainability
- Technical issues such as architecture, applications, standards, security, and accurately and responsibly linking patient data
- Methods to facilitate clinician adoption, clinical process change, and application of clinical knowledge at the point of care
- Engaging patients and citizens
Nations presenting at the Geneva LIGHT conference offered an insightful and cross-sectional overview of HIT development and use in countries around the globe. From Australia to Bangladesh to rural China, nations are providing the building blocks for implementing information technology, electronic connectivity, and a health information infrastructure Overall, nations are in nascent stages of HIT use, funding and development and many existing collaborations to integrate HIT with the patient care experience are regional in nature and are fueled, in part, by private funding.
The LIGHT Inaugural Summit is the first in a series of meetings between high-level global health and HIT experts aimed at mobilizing positive movement and change towards better healthcare through HIT and electronic health information infrastructure.
