Digital health refers to the use of digital technologies—such as mobile applications, telemedicine, electronic health records, wearable devices, and health information platforms—to improve prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and the management of health systems. In recent years, artificial intelligence (AI) has become an important complement, offering tools to analyze complex data, support clinical decision-making, and accelerate biomedical innovation. Together, digital health and AI have the potential to transform global health by improving equity, efficiency, and innovation.
Concrete benefits are already visible. AI can help doctors detect diseases more accurately, such as identifying cancers in scans or predicting outbreaks through data analysis. Telemedicine expands access to care for people in remote or underserved areas, as seen during the COVID-19 pandemic, reducing barriers of distance and cost. Wearables and other digital monitoring tools help patients manage chronic conditions like diabetes or heart disease. These innovations keep patients engaged in their care, reduce missed follow-up visits, support adherence to treatments, and expand access to life-saving services.
However, these opportunities come with serious challenges. Unequal access to internet, electricity, and digital skills—the digital divide—risks widening health inequalities between and within countries. False or misleading information on digital platforms, as seen during COVID-19, can undermine public trust and damage health responses. AI systems may reflect gaps or biases in their training data, making them less accurate for some populations and leading to unfair outcomes. Risks to data privacy and cybersecurity further complicate efforts to build trust. Finally, accountability remains uncertain: if an AI tool makes a wrong diagnosis that harms a patient, it is not always clear whether responsibility lies with the doctor, the hospital, the developer, or the regulator.
These concerns raise key questions for negotiation. How can stronger global rules for AI in health be developed—rules that ensure transparency (so patients and providers understand how decisions are made), accountability (so responsibility is clear if harm occurs), and fairness (so systems work equally well for all populations)? What can developed countries do to support technology transfer, training, and investment in digital infrastructure so that low- and middle-income countries are not left behind?
Negotiations on this agenda item must further address how governments can encourage innovation while safeguarding privacy, and what steps are needed to guarantee equitable access to digital health tools. The role of private actors—who currently dominate much of the digital health space—must be discussed as well, especially in terms of ensuring compliance with global health principles. This agenda item highlights the need for a global digital health framework that is innovative, rights-based, and ensures health services remain accessible to all.
78 Years Engaging Global Citizens
