Interview with the director of Health Services Management Training Centre at Semmelweis University: Miklós Szócska

“Health data should not be regarded as an asset of secondary use, instead, as a primary tool to heal“

Miklós Szócska, Director of Semmelweis University Health Services Management Training Centre Head of Division: Health Safety National Laboratory Data-Driven Health Division

A paradigm shift to data-driven healthcare is inevitable.

Data will play a central role at all levels of healthcare from decision making to diagnostics, clinical research and public health. It is now widely used in numerous healthcare projects across the European Union to exploit the benefits it can bring. My goal is to make members of projects like this aware of their role as part of a broader effort that leads to data-driven health care systems.  

 

The European landscape

From a data-driven healthcare viewpoint, member states can be categorized into two major groups. Few countries such as Portugal, Hungary, the Baltic states and the northern states have integrated data systems: they have data and a history of a single-payer system that would allow them to leverage this data on a systemic level. The other cohort comprises countries with ample funding and advanced technological solutions but without an integrated dataset that therefore rely mostly on standalone solutions.

Collaboration for success

Having data and having access to it is a prerequisite for systemic capability. Health data should not be regarded as an asset of secondary use, instead, as a primary tool to heal. To maximize its benefits, we need industry experts who know how to utilize it, data scientists capable of interpreting it properly and leaders who are committed to a data-driven future./ who support and enable the entire process.

Building trust

Current data protection safeguards complicate the use and exchange of data across borders and among different stakeholders. Rather than restricting access to it, the health industry and big tech companies need to form mutually beneficial agreements that serve the public good. While we are happy to give access to our data to a number of unregulated players (e.g. banks, shops, apps) that have intimate insight into our lives, we become wary when it comes to sharing health information – even despite “built-in breaks” such as physicians’ oath. Similarly, we have issues with the pharma industry but at least it is a regulated sector. Major tech companies bidding for access to our data are not nor are they bound by any oath.
Building a platform of trust and bridging the gap between those handling our data and those healing us is essential. Healthcare professionals, too, need to warm up to the idea of data scientists acquiring a greater role in this sector and healing directly with data. They also need to look at AI as a tool that supports their work and not something that replaces them.

By addressing these challenges and fostering collaboration, the shift to data-driven healthcare will be smoother and will benefit all stakeholders involved.