Why countries need to work together to bring digital health into the future
Germany and Sweden are leading the way
Each country has its own unique healthcare system, but they face similar problems, like growing populations with chronic, complex, and difficult-to-treat illnesses that require more personalized and preventative models of care. Germany, for example, has positioned itself as a leader in digital health. ItsDigital Care Act, established last November, gives doctors the ability to prescribe medical apps that are paid for by public health insurance, which currently covers 73 million Germans; think apps that offer a guideline-based, behavioral therapy for chronic tinnitus exposure likeKalmedaor mental health apps that offer cognitive behavioral therapy exercises likevelibra.
The new legislation, which also fast-tracked applications, DiGAs, into standard care, will likely be a topic of discussion among the participants of the upcomingGerman-Swedish Digital Health Eventhosted by the Digital Hub Initiative and TNW, as well as an attractive proposal to foreign startups.
This event arose out of theGerman-Swedish Innovation Partnership, signed by German Federal Chancellor Angela Merkel and the Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Löfven in 2017 and 2019. Given the challenging regulatory framework of the healthcare sector, but also the high potential, startups and businesses in digital health can profit substantially from exchanges, networking, and cooperation between each other and relevant stakeholders.
This event is powered by the Digital Hub Initiative and supported by various German and Swedish ministries, Germany Trade and Invest (GTAI), as well as other stakeholders engaged in digital health. The goal is to encourage the exchange of ideas and experiences in order to help businesses and startups in digital health to strive and access national and international markets.
Startup success stories will drive excitement around this partnership. For example, German online medical consultation startupDoctolib, which is one of the three most-used telemedicine platforms in the world, will join the event and likely speak to the fact that their technology, coupled with the coronavirus pandemic, will upend the way society seeks medical care.Doctrin, a Swedish startup that provides a digital platform to healthcare providers with an automated medical history and communication tool to integrate patient-centric healthcare, will also speak at the conference and be able to answer any questions about expanding to other markets, as the company progresses its offerings to the Nordic region.
There has never been a better time to invest in digital health. In Germany, the market volume of digital health is predicted to grow57 billion euro by 2025. Globally, it’s expected to grow 979B Euros.SwedenandGermanychose different approaches to handle the pandemic, yet the two countries wish to use this event to demonstrate that business and collaboration is still ongoing. Thought leaders will discuss topics like why the future of healthcare is digital and how digital hubs can help shape digital health markets, and startups will be able to pitch their ideas to VCs, encouraging cross-country investments.
“Besides the financial investment, we hope to see investors that are also willing to be mentors to startups that wish to expand to other countries,” said Josefina Nungesser, Director of Trend and Innovation Scouting at GTAI. Nungesser also pointed out that an expanded digital hub would make both countries more attractive to digital health startups seeking connections and resources.
“We know that in some ways, we are competitors in terms of locations for startups,” said Nungesser. “But at the same time, if you believe in a European vision, and I think both Germany and Sweden do, then you don’t see yourselves only as competitors. We would like to be an example to the world demonstrating that more collaboration and partnerships in Europe will strengthen the European startup ecosystem, and I think we can only benefit from that.”
Story byRebecca Bellan
Rebecca Bellan is a journalist who covers social media and technology innovation for Forbes.com. She has a background covering urbanization,(show all)Rebecca Bellan is a journalist who covers social media and technology innovation for Forbes.com. She has a background covering urbanization, policy, and transportation, and her work has been featured in Bloomberg CityLab, The Atlantic, The Daily Beast, Mother Jones, and more.
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