What are the key ingredients for launching a successful Digital Health project?

by Elli Ghozzati, September 15, 2021

Most of the people in the healthcare industry understand that there is a gap between technology and medicine. There are different challenges that must be overcome to launch a successful Digital Health project such as expectations, usability, data security, regulatory compliance, interoperability questions, different programming languages, timing, and the list goes on.

We would like to point out the most important aspects to consider when implementing a Digital Health project:

1. Choosing the right Digital Health partner is one of the crucial key aspects:

It’s very important to know what the internal partnership goals are. What exactly are the needs? Does the partner count on a broad expertise and background in the Digital Health area (past projects, clients)? Are they able to deliver a secure user and patient data governance service and data encryption in case of cyberattacks? Are their products compliant with health industry-standard framework (GDPR, CE marking, ISO’s, HIPAA, etc.)?

Furthermore, partners who understand the client’s internal organizational procedures (compliance, legal, etc.) will speed up the whole approval process and make all the steps easier.

How about their innovative mindset? A good partner should always have a problem-solving mindset. The best partner would be one who doesn’t just deliver what the client demands but also contributes ideas and thinks outside the box. Generally, in the best scenario, partners should work side-by-side with their client.

2. Defining the project’s objectives and goals:

The process of turning clear and urgent problems into precise project objectives with key performance indicators (KPIs) is an important step before developing a Digital Health project. To specify the objectives, it is essential to answer the following questions:

What is the problem to solve? Is there a certain aspect of the business that should be improved? What changes should be achieved? Who are the end-users? How will the digital solution influence the patient journey? Finally, what are the best KPI metrics for the project?

Even if defining the goals in the beginning is difficult and time consuming, it is worth putting energy into finding the answers since they will guide everyone throughout the whole process and help provide the clarity to make the right decisions.

3. Creating a team in charge of the project:

Forming a team and listing the stakeholders who are responsible for guiding the process of development and implementation of the project before starting the full planning, is one of the key issues for the success of the project.

The team includes the internal staff and also external actors such as physicians, consultants, specialized partners, government, etc. The role of each team member should be identified, considering their skills, knowledge, qualification and motivation to work on the project.

To build momentum, cross-functional teams need visible management support, a clear mandate to get things done, enough resources to build out a program, responsibility, and accountability.

To summarize the above, a problem-solving technological partner, clear and real goals and a qualified cross-functional team are the secret ingredients to a successful Digital Health project.

Being aware of the importance of all these aspects, at Persei vivarium we have a committed multidisciplinary team with more than 20 years of experience in the field. Thanks to our team and our technology we keep adding value to healthcare professionals, industry and patients all over the world.

For more information: Digital Implementation Investment Guide (DIIG): Integrating Digital Interventions into Health Programmes (WHO)