To prevent, detect, and respond to public health threats, government decision makers need timely, accurate, and comprehensive public health data. While there has been improvement in surveillance systems, key gaps remain in data systems, governance and policy, and informatics and digital health competencies in the workforce. In response, Vital Wave led the creation and articulation of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Global Digital Health Strategy (GDHS). This included the facilitation of a collaborative and iterative creation and policy-clearance process with over 80 stakeholders internal to CDC and from the wider digital health community.
Drawing on Vital Wave’s resident knowledge, field-wide inputs, and the unique role CDC plays in global health, Vital Wave crafted an agency-wide strategy and a proposed collective strategy for the broader global digital health community. The GDHS aims to improve the state of global digital health and accelerate the achievement of country-level digital enablement of health systems in support of public health, healthcare service delivery, health equity goals, science, disease detection and response, as well as research priorities. The strategy itself is unique in that it calls the community to rally around a set of unifying goals and objectives – where the achievement of each goal depends on collective commitment and action. It also offers a strategic road map for digital transformation that engages domestic, country, regional, and global partners.
