The APEC Conference on Digital Healthcare Innovation, hosted by the NHIA, will be held on September 21st to 22nd, 2022, in Conference Room 1101 of the Chang Yung-fa Foundation International Conference Center. In addition to the one-and-a-half-day international conference, the venue will also have exhibits for various digital healthcare applications, giving participants the chance to experience them on-site.
The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) is one of the most important multi-lateral official forums for economic cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region. To strengthen interaction and exchange of various economies, the NHIA applied to APEC project funding and received financial subsidies to host the conference. Its purpose is to help participants understand the experiences of various economies in developing digital healthcare. This conference will also be an opportunity for Taiwan to share its strengths with other economies and thus increase opportunities for further cooperation.
The conference is the first international conference to be held by the MOHW physically since the Covid-19 pandemic began. It also had the honor of inviting MOHW Deputy Minister Shih Chung-Liang and Director-General Sharon S. N. Wu of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' Department of International Organizations to deliver the opening remarks. NHIA Director General Po-Chang Lee will share the Administration’s experience in using digital technology in NHI to fight against the pandemic. At the same time, the conference has also invited many prestigious experts and scholars from Taiwan to give speeches and preside over meetings. In addition, officials, experts, and scholars from the health ministries of the United States, Japan, South Korea, Australia, Thailand, the Philippines, Malaysia, and other economies will participate in person or online as lecturers.
On day one of the conference, professors from Harvard University and officials from the Malaysian Ministry of Health will share the transformation and innovative applications of digital health post-pandemic. Officials from the Thai Ministry of Public Health, professors from the College of Medicine of National Cheng Kung University, and IT managers from Quanta Computer will share digital health policies and challenges post-pandemic. Officials from the Department of Health of the Philippines, professors from the University of Queensland in Australia, and professors from the National Taiwan University College of Medicine will discuss the development of telemedicine and metaverse hospitals.
On day two of the conference, officials from Japan's Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, the US Department of Commerce, and South Korea's Ministry of Health and Welfare will share on AI technology applications. In addition, officials in charge of digital healthcare and telemedicine from the health agencies of Canada, Mexico, Malaysia, Peru, and other economies will also attend the meeting either online or physically.
Director General Po-Chang Lee points out the NHIA has developed digital health applications for years. Based on the NHI database containing 23 million people throughout Taiwan, two important systems, NHI MediCloud and My Health Bank were established since 2013. Furthermore, the world has been severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic since 2020, making medical systems under enormous pressure, and forcing health care systems and health care industry in the world to accelerate adoption of smart health for disease prevention. In the post-pandemic era, emerging services in health technology turned out to be a norm. Taiwan’s experience in using health information and smart medicine to fight the pandemic is thus ever worthy of being shared with the rest of the world.
Please visit the link to register for the conference at [Link]. The registration deadline is September 15, 2022.