The Philippine Council for Health Research and Development (PCHRD), in partnership with the Institute of Philippine Culture (IPC) of the Ateneo de Manila University, hosted a two-day kick-off meeting on “eHealth Technologies and Data Governance” on 27 to 28 February 2017 at San Alberto Hurtado Hall, Ateneo de Manila University, Quezon City and Capitol Resort Hotel, Lingayen, Pangasinan, respectively.

Supported by the ASEAN Network for Drugs, Diagnostics, and Vaccines Innovation (ASEAN-NDI), the meeting officially launched the October 2017 “Learning Interaction on eHealth Technologies in the ASEAN” conference, a part of the 2017 Philippine hosting of the ASEAN.

Dr. Jaime Montoya, PCHRD Executive Director, cited that the Philippines has long been challenged by constraints in accessibility and availability of healthcare services and information wherein about 90% of health professionals and 60% of tertiary hospitals where only found in urban areas.

“Due to these limitations, DOST recognizes that the solution lies in a strategy that incorporates SMARTER technologies. This is where eHealth comes into place. The eHealth program serves as one of the countries’ primary strategies to reform the current health care system,” Dr. Montoya emphasized.

Highlights of the program were two book launchings, the “Breaking Ground for HATID ASEAN: Proceedings of ASEAN-Level Technical Meetings on eHealth Technologies for Local Government Units” and the “eHealth LGU User Guide and Manual.” Presentations and discussions on the Indonesian, Thailand, and Philippine HATID ASEAN proposal were held.

The Province of Pangasinan, through Provincial Health Officers Anna Teresa De Guzman and Cielo Almoite, also shared their experiences on integrating eHealth technologies for data and health governance in their province.

ASEAN-NDI, hosted by PCHRD, is the first health research and development (R&D) innovation network under the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).