Participatory Digital Health Technology Development

Course

URL study guide

https://studiegids.vu.nl/en/courses/2024-2025/AB_1296

Course Objective

Knowledge:
• Gain insight in the development of health care (systems) in which various new information and communication technologies (including machine learning and AI) are developed and deployed.
• Gain insight in the ethical and societal dimensions of information and communication technology applications in health care.
• Gain insight in why top-down design processes of information and communication technology applications in health care may aggravate existing social and health inequalities.
• Gain theoretical and practical insight in how to design information and communication technology applications in health care by involving various stakeholders in the design process to mitigate such inequalities. Skills:
• Learn how to critically assess the development of information and communication technologies in health care.
• Learn how to apply the co-creation approach of Participatory eHealth Development to develop more sustainable ICT based innovations in health care.
• Acquire skills in the facilitation of group discussions

Course Content

Health care systems face great difficulties in providing adequate care for an affordable price. A promising and widely occurring development is the use of various information and communication technologies in health care. These technologies enable more efficient and personalized health care by better connecting health care professionals with patients, and by the reflexive monitoring of treatments they facilitate. However, research has shown how such technologies often reproduce digital and health inequalities because their development is generally top-down and tech-driven and does not (sufficiently) include the experience and needs of future users and stakeholders. The central tenet of this course is that technology developed with all the people concerned achieves the greatest value creation, and mitigates current digital and health inequalities. Students will learn about the development of health care (systems) in which various new information and communication technologies (including machine learning and AI) are developed and deployed. They will gain insights in the ethical and societal dimensions of these developments, and how these may aggravate existing social and health inequalities. To mitigate those, they will learn about co-creation mechanisms and frameworks in e-health development to foster more inclusive workflows for the future and to build more sustainable and successful e-health technologies. This is mainstay in Participatory Health Research and Technology Design.

Teaching Methods

Lectures, assignment, self study Total contact hours: 54 Lectures: 28 Working groups (staff available)/Training: 26

Method of Assessment

Group Project Business Case 50% (10% Presentation; 40% Final Report) Exam 40% Self-Assessment 10% All components must be completed with at least a pass (5.5). In case of an insufficient part, you have to revise the assignment or do the re-sit exam.

Literature

To be announced on Canvas

Target Audience

Course for students within the minor Biomedical and health interventions.
Academic year1/09/2431/08/25
Course level6.00 EC

Language of Tuition

  • English

Study type

  • Bachelor