He Government of Spain has given green light for the activation of the additional 223 million euros allocated to AI in Healthwhich the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, committed to the Autonomous Communities at the Conference of Presidents.
The activation of this item has begun with the signing of the first of the agreements for the Intelligent Digital Services program in the National Health System between the Minister for Digital Transformation and the Public Service, Óscar López; and the President of the Generalitat of Catalonia, Salvador Illa, which took place at the Arnau y Vilanova Hospital, in Lleida.
Red.es will be the entity in charge of financing the program that will lead to greater deployment of AI in Healthcare. It will do so through Feder funds, and with the Ministry of Health. The Autonomous Communities can access this financing through a collaboration agreement with the Government of Spain. In the case of Catalonia, the agreement that has just been signed will allow the community to have an additional 27 million euros to modernize its healthcare.
The program will last four years, and its main lines of action include the implementation of remote monitoring programs for chronic pathologies, the use of advanced analytics in health, and the development of use cases based on neurotechnology and AI focused on neurological and psychiatric disorders.
Among the use cases of this deployment of AI in healthcare will be those for the diagnosis and monitoring of rare diseases. Once developed, they will be made available to all health administrations. Another purpose of the program that will expand the use of AI in Health is the offer of facilities for the implementation of telecare programs, which will lead to a more personalized, accessible and sustainable care model.
This program to promote AI in Healthcare will not only be intended to improve the care and diagnosis of pathologies, or the care of patients. It also aims to reduce bureaucracy in healthcare, free up professionals’ time and guarantee equity in the provision of medical services in all Autonomous Communities. In short, optimize the resources of the National Health System, which will also contribute to improving the quality of care.
According to the assessment of the Minister for Digital Transformation and Public Service, Óscar López«With this agreement we say yes to strengthening public health, taking advantage of the digital revolution to improve patient care and the diagnosis and treatment of diseases.«.
