The online portal links to publicly available digital health and interoperability strategy resources, updates, and planning documents for each province and territory in Canada.
Across Canada, jurisdictional health authority teams build roadmaps, outline strategic plans, and produce discussion papers focused on leveraging technology to increase access to care, bring care closer to home for people who need it, and address care inequities. While each region has unique challenges and restrictions, all stakeholders share this common goal: find the best ways to use data and technology to transform Canadian health-care delivery and continuously improve the patient and provider experience.
But working in silos — focusing only on a single region or jurisdiction — reduces efficiency, narrows focus, and leaves teams open to duplication of work. Long-standing operational silos can stand in the way of widespread reform. A more strategic approach to health-care digital transformation is crucial to addressing Canadian health-care delivery challenges; improving collaboration between teams and regions is an important component of a solid strategy.
Breaking down barriers for greater collaboration
One of the first steps toward breaking down barriers between teams and jurisdictions is to facilitate the exchange of information. By creating a free online resource that gives digital health professionals a single point of reference for regional strategic plans and priorities, Digital Health Canada is hoping to ease the way for teams looking for access to digital health strategy updates from across the country.
“The concept is straightforward — collect existing digital health strategy reports from across Canada in one place,” said Mark Casselman, CEO of Digital Health Canada. “But the hope is that this new resource will act as a catalyst for important discussions about inter-provincial collaboration, national digital health strategy alignment, and the health-care digital transformation we need.”
Canadian Digital Health Strategy Resources content will be sourced and maintained by Digital Health Canada with support from the subject matter experts and health sector leaders who make up the membership of Digital Health Canada’s CHIEF Executive Forum. CHIEF provides a space for senior professionals and leaders in digital health and health care to collaborate, exchange best practices, and offer their expertise in setting the agenda for the effective use of information and technology to improve health and health care in Canada.
Phase 2 planned for 2023
Currently available through Canadian Digital Health Strategy Resources (ordered from west to east): Virtual care action plan (Yukon); Health and Social Services System Human Resources Plan (Northwest Territories); Inuusivut Anninaqtuq Action Plan (Nunavut); What We Heard Report (Phase 1 & 2), EMR Summary Report; System Interoperability What We Heard Report (BC); Health Plan & Business Plan (Alberta); Saskatchewan Health Authority Roadmap; Manitoba Virtual Care Action Plan; Ontario Connected Care Update; Québec Life Sciences Strategy; Striving for Dependable Public Health Care (New Brunswick); Strategic Plan to Improve Healthcare in Nova Scotia; Health PEI Strategic Plan; Health and Community Services Strategic Plan (Newfoundland and Labrador).
In 2023, a planned second phase of the new resource will include the following:
- Regional and federal government contact information.
- Behind-the-scenes reports.
- Updates on strategy status for CHIEF Executive Forum members.
