The 6th edition of the GCC eHealth Workforce Development Conference (eHWDC 2023) is set to bring together some of the most prominent experts in digital health and related fields in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. This important event is scheduled to take place from October 31 to November 2, 2023, at Jumeirah Emirates Towers, Dubai.
eHWDC 2023 will focus on critical digital health topics, including public health, health information exchange systems (HIEs), data governance, artificial intelligence, and workforce development. The conference is organized by the GCC Taskforce on Workforce Development in Digital Healthcare (ZIMAM) and MWAN Events. It aligns with ZIMAM’s mission to foster a sustainable digital healthcare ecosystem through a skilled local digital health workforce in countries such as the United Arab Emirates, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and Qatar.
Dr. Osama El Hassan, Co-founder and Lead Coordinator of ZIMAM, emphasizes the importance of strong collaboration to achieve this goal, involving government recruitment agencies, higher education institutes, healthcare trainers, and technology vendors. Together with public and private healthcare organizations, they aim to develop curriculums, on-the-job training, and career paths to empower young talent to lead the digital health transformation in the GCC.
Dr. El Hassan explains that ZIMAM was founded in 2016 when digital transformation was in its early stages in the GCC. They recognized the challenges they faced, relying heavily on external companies for project development. To achieve sustainability in digital health, they decided to build their own workforce. Driven by this vision, ZIMAM was established to promote digital health as a profession. Through community building and events, ZIMAM has successfully raised awareness about health informatics and created a priority for building a digital health workforce in the region.
HIMSS, the publisher of Healthcare IT News, will also participate in eHWDC 2023, with President and CEO Hal Wolf attending key panels and events. Joining him is John Rayner, Regional Director of HIMSS Analytics for Europe and Latin America. Rayner will share insights into digital maturity and discuss practical examples of how patient safety and the quality of clinical care can be improved using digital maturity models. He highlights the importance of measuring digital maturity across the entire system and managing the system effectively, emphasizing that whole systems leadership differs from leading a single organization.
In addition, Rayner serves on the awards committee for the ZIMAM Digital Health Awards 2023, which will recognize individuals and organizations that have made exceptional contributions to advancing digital health.
eHWDC 2023 will also feature a special HIMSS Middle East Community Meeting on October 31, providing a valuable networking opportunity for professionals in the digital health space. This meeting facilitates connections among like-minded individuals and institutions, helping to match hospitals with similar needs and solutions for benchmarking and references.
For those interested in attending eHWDC 2023, registration details can be found on the event’s website.
