Digital health and care strategy
This is the refreshed strategy which sets out how the Scottish Government will work together to improve the care and wellbeing of people in Scotland by making best use of digital technologies in the design and delivery of services, in a way, place and time that works best for them.
The Scottish Government now echo and extend the sentiment made in the foreword of the Digital Health and Care Strategy published in 2018: digital technology is an essential component of fit for purpose health and care services in a modern, dynamic Scotland.
The pandemic, and the Scottish Governments' response to it, has accelerated the pace of digital transformation, whist highlighting the challenges faced by people who find themselves excluded from the digital world.
It also highlighted some of the gaps that existed within it, most notably around inclusion, equalities, ethics and data.
It is for these reasons that the Scottish Government set out to refresh their Digital Health and Care Strategy for Scotland, building on the progress that has been made to date, whilst taking account of the opportunities and challenges brought about by the changed landscape that we now live in.
This Strategy reflects on their vision, and outlines six priorities, including:
- Priority one: People have digital access to information, their own data and services which support their health and wellbeing, wherever they are.
- Priority two: Digital options are increasingly available as a choice for people accessing services and staff delivering them.
- Priority three: The infrastructure, systems, regulation, standards and governance are in place to ensure robust and secure delivery.
- Priority four: Digital skills are seen as core skills for the workforce across the health and care sector
- Priority five: Our wellbeing and economy benefits as Scotland remains at the heart of digital innovation and development.
- Priority six: Data is harnessed to the benefit of citizens, services and innovation.
This strategy plans to go further than their 2018 Strategy by introducing a rolling three-year delivery plan, updated each year from April 2022, recognising that the transformation required is rooted in the 'how', and not the 'what' or the 'why'.