Internationally, the COVID-19 pandemic has put extreme stress on the healthcare workforce. The World Health Organization (WHO) describes this as a ticking timebomb. Countries around the globe face severe challenges related to the healthcare workforce. The pandemic–combined with problems related to an ageing healthcare workforce, retirements, and burnout and stress from high workload, high work acuity and fast paced industry changes–has contributed to an ever-shrinking labour force (WHO, 2022). The industry is not expected to rebound soon, simply because there are not enough people with healthcare backgrounds applying for open positions. These workforce shortages and maldistribution also contribute heavily to emotional and mental health challenges in the healthcare workforce (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, ASPE Issue Brief, 2022).
Now is the time to take stock of the role that technologies play in supporting and/or challenging health care systems. What lessons have we learned about implementing new digital health technologies? What needs to be learned and improved? How can regional digital health experiences contribute to international solutions?
To address these crucial questions, the Transatlantic Telehealth Research Network (TTRN), in collaboration with the International Society of Telemedicine and eHealth at Aalborg University, invites you to the international scientific conference entitled: “An International Perspective on Building Capacity in Health Care through Technology” to be held at the University of California, in Berkeley, California, USA, on August 22-23, 2023. The conference is supported by CITRIS and the Banatao Institute.
