Digital health in Lebanon: The way Forward
In an effort to discuss the future of healthcare in Lebanon, Dr. Youssef Bassim, the Chief Operating Officer and Assistant to the President of University of Balamand for Health Affairs participated in a Health retreat organized by the Ministry of Public Health.
The event, titled "Digital Health in Lebanon: The Way Forward," served as a platform for initiating a crucial dialogue on digital health and paving the way for a comprehensive national digital health strategy. As a panelist, Dr. Bassim delivered a presentation on "Telemedicine: Breaking Access Barriers." His lecture shed light on how telehealth can overcome geographical, financial, and logistical challenges, thereby enhancing access to healthcare services for individuals across diverse populations. Dr. Bassim emphasized the transformative impact of telemedicine, a field that combines medicine and technology to provide remote healthcare services, bridging the gap between patients and healthcare providers and reducing the cost of healthcare significantly. Additionally, Dr. Bassim also presented the "Revitalizing Medical and health service Offering via Telehealth - REMOTE Project," which was implemented by the Public Health Department at the Faculty of Health Sciences in collaboration with US Aid, UN Migration, SASTA, Hera, Order of Malta in Lebanon, and the Ministry of Public Health. This project aims to develop a scalable and replicable evidence-based model for integrating telehealth in primary health centers in low-resource settings, using Lebanon as a case study.