Health Data Space

The Need of a Health Data Space

Digitalization is not just a choice but a necessity for the future of healthcare. The digital transformation is crucial for providing superior healthcare to citizens, reinforcing the resilience of health systems, fueling long-term competitiveness and innovation in the EU’s medical industry, and aiding the EU in its post-pandemic recovery.

While an enormous volume of health data is generated every second, its accessibility to healthcare professionals is far from straightforward. The intricacies and disparities in rules, structures, and processes, both within and across countries, act as major obstacles to healthcare delivery and innovation. Furthermore, cybersecurity concerns are of utmost importance.

This leaves patients unable to harness the full potential of their own health data, and cybersecurity becomes paramount to safeguard this invaluable resource.

A Shared Challenge Beyond Borders

As most patients’ health data is still recorded on paper, citizens cannot always easily access their health data electronically. Sharing this data with multiple healthcare professionals becomes particularly challenging.

Crossing national borders adds another layer of complexity. When patients seek medical care in another country, their medical information, including crucial diagnostic images, is often inaccessible, potentially leading to delays and diagnostic errors.

This issue affects researchers, practitioners, and policymakers alike. These stakeholders encounter significant hurdles when attempting to access essential data for research, informed decision-making, or the long-term monitoring of medicinal products based on real-world evidence, all of which have a direct impact on patient safety.

The Solution

Creating a European Health Data Space

First, within the four widening countries

Pioneering the European Health Data Space (EHDS)

VELES paves the way for the European Health Data Space (EHDS) by enabling the development of a Regional Smart Health Data Space (RSHDS).

The EHDS will establish a robust legal framework for harnessing health data’s full potential. It will enable research, innovation, public health initiatives, informed policy-making, and regulatory endeavors.

Moreover, citizens’ data will be protected through strong regulation. Under strict conditions, researchers, innovators, public institutions or industry will have access to large amounts of high-quality health data.

This invaluable resource is essential for advancing life-saving treatments, vaccines, and medical devices, ultimately leading to improved healthcare access and more resilient health systems.