Challenge

Differently developing digital health systems across Europe and the United States hindered cooperation, data exchange and the wider adoption of eHealth solutions . Through increased travel and migration, healthcare information needed to be accessible across different systems and borders. At the same time, the EU and US needed shared methods for evaluating eHeath technologies, learning from international experience and developing solutions suitable for global markets.

Solutions

ARGOS brought European and American policymakers, researchers and health-informatics experts together through a proposed Transatlantic Observatory for Meeting Global Health Policy Challenges through ICT-Enabled Solutions.

The project focused on three main areas:

• Interoperability and certification of electronic health record systems;
• Common indicators and tools for measuring eHealth adoption, use, benefits and costs;
• Computer modelling and simulation of human psychology and disease, including applications for diagnosing and treating rare diseases.

Results

Argos strengthened dialogue and mutual learning between European and American eHealth stakeholders. It produced comparative analyses and policy recommendations addressing major digital-health challenges, including electronic health-record interoperability, eHealth evaluation and health modelling. The project’s main findings were published in a dedicated volume of proceedings containing policy briefs from the transatlantic exchange. These outputs helped build a shared understanding of how ICT would improve healthcare access, efficiency and quality while supporting greater international cooperation. Argos also developed a vision for a continuing international platform which policymakers and researchers could exchange knowledge and work towards common approaches to global eHealth challenges.