The course in Digital Health provides students with a comprehensive understanding of how digital technologies are used in healthcare. It focuses on how digital transformation can improve clinical decision-making, empower patients and reduce inequalities. Students will also learn how to design a digital health project including all the necessary elements for its implementation in a healthcare setting.
No prior knowledge is required.
The objectives are:
1. Understand the key concepts of digital health from a clinical and person-centered perspective.
2. Analyze the impact of technology on shared decision-making and the patient experience.
3. Identify opportunities to improve accessibility, adherence and health literacy through digital tools.
4. Critically evaluate existing digital solutions based on real clinical needs.
5. Design empathetic and sustainable digital health proposals in care settings.
6. Learn how to design a digital health project including all necessary elements for its development and implementation.
Module 1: Introduction to Digital Health in the clinical setting
- What digital health is and why it matters.
- Established technologies in clinical care: telemedicine, apps, electronic health records.
- Shared decision-making and patient experience.
- Health literacy and the digital divide.
Module 2: Needs-based evaluation and design
- Clinical cases and exploration of unmet needs.
- Accessibility, adherence, and inclusive design.
- Gamification and engagement in health.
- Impact-driven project design.
Module 3: Practice and projects
- Role-playing: professionals and patients facing clinical alerts and notifications.
- Co-design workshop: selection of the best proposal based on real clinical challenges.
- Final project presentation with critical and group evaluation.
The course is structured in participatory lectures, guided case-solving, workshops, debates, group practices, clinical visits and a final cooperative project. Students will develop competencies through active methodologies, project-based learning and gamified activities.
Students will be assessed through a continuous and global evaluation of knowledge and competencies, including class activities, assignments or projects, and active participation, complemented by a final integrative exam, with defined weightings between continuous assessment and the final test, requiring a minimum overall grade to pass the course, and with a single final assessment in the resit examination.
Assessment will consider understanding of key digital health concepts, the ability to analyze and interpret clinical information, the application of knowledge to practical problems, teamwork and effective communication, and critical thinking in the design and evaluation of digital health projects.
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Wolf, J. A., Niederhauser, V., Marshburn, D., & LaVela, S. L. (2014). Defining patient experience. Patient Experience Journal, 1(1), 7–19.
Lupton, E., & Ku, B. (2020). Health design thinking. MIT Press.