• anaesthesia
• pain management
• audit
• basic sciences

In a communication that was published at the end of April, the European Commission provided insights on the digital transformation of health and care in the Digital Single Market. Measures identified by the communication aim at increasing the availability of data in the EU and at building on previous initiatives to boost the free flow of non-personal data. This publication basis itself on the result of a public consultation concluded in September 2017.

The initiative by the European Commission, which provides direction for EU-level activities in the field of digital health for the coming years, was welcomed by many stakeholders such as patient and healthcare professional associations. Three main areas of action were identified focusing on securing access to health data for citizens, personalised medicine and citizen empowerment with digital tools for user feedback and person-centred care.

Concrete actions for each of the three key areas have been put forward by the European Commission including but not limited to the development of an eHealth Digital Service Infrastructure, the creation of voluntary collaboration mechanisms for health research and clinical practice, the implementation of pilot exercises for rare and infectious diseases as well as the facilitation of the supply and uptake of innovative digital-based solutions for health.