Are Clinicians Prepared to Harness the Power of Digital Health?

Despite the promise of digital health tools to bring clinically-proven care to patients with unprecedented levels of convenience, and despite the overwhelming eagerness of patients to embrace digital health tools, physicians remain hesitant. We decided to deploy a digital health literacy course at our institution, Stanford Medical School. Since medical students will not only be future clinicians, but also future educators and leaders responsible for spearheading the cultural shift around digital health, we also sought to improve their ability to converse confidently and knowledgeably about these tools. The bulk of the course covered the most significant applications of digital health: telemedicine, mental and behavioral health, clinical trials and precision medicine, and population health emphasizing tools with a demonstrated track record of clinical utility and with existing traction among patients and clinicians. Interspersed throughout the course were sessions on cultivating the clinician-patient relationship, cultural and systemic barriers to healthcare innovation, models of healthcare delivery and reimbursement, and the process by which digital health tools are clinically validated and implemented. Equipping students with critical thinking skills about the strategic implementation of digital health tools will prepare them to be future clinicians who can provide the best care possible for their patients.