Digitization is omnipresent in industry and our everyday lives. But how does it affect the healthcare system? What effects does technological progress have on our health and on the provision of services by doctors, clinics and health insurances? The Digital Health Management degree program at Aalen University addresses these questions.
Digitization brings about major changes in all areas of life. It is still relatively underdeveloped in health care, but offers enormous potential for improving the well-being of the patient. However, the requirements and expectations for digital solutions are particularly high. For example, topics such as data protection and data security play an important role here. Well-trained professionals are needed to shape the digital transformation in healthcare. They form the interface between information technology, medicine and the legal and economic framework conditions. These three areas are combined in the degree program Digital Health Management (DHM) at Aalen University.
A recent study by the Bertelsmann Foundation compared the state of digitization in health care on an international level. Here the German health service reached the sobering 16th rank of 17 evaluated countries. The core of the study was the creation of a Digital Health Index, which identifies the state of digitalization of a national healthcare system. The evaluation was based on 34 indicators on strategy, digital maturity and actual networked health data exchange. Germany achieved a Digital Health Index of 30.0 here. By comparison, Estonia’s first place in the study is worth 81.9.
“The German health system is changing and evolving towards ‘Digital Health’. Many hurdles and problems stand in the way of this development “, explains Professor Dr. med. Stefan Fetzer, study coordinator of the degree program. “The graduates from Aalen are prepared for the difficult environment of the health industry and politics. You can help develop and shape the healthcare system of tomorrow. Specialists who are familiar with the peculiarities of the healthcare system and at the same time possess profound IT skills are rare. We would like to close this gap through the study program, “Fetzer continues.
Further information on the degree program Digital Health Management can be found at www.hs-aalen.de/dhm.
