Ana Luísa Neves, a researcher at CINTESIS@RISE/FMUP, has been elected “Chair” of the Working Party on eHealth of the World Organization for General Practice (WONCA). The election took place in Sydney in October, during the organization’s latest world conference. The mandate will last two years.
“I am really inspired by the trust placed in me by the members of the Working Party on eHealth and look forward to collaborating with the global community with an interest in digital health,” says the FMUP professor.
She aims to “promote leadership in digital innovation, knowledge exchange and international collaboration to advance the implementation of digital health in Primary Care.
Her main areas of activity will be “evaluating the implementation of digital health initiatives (with a focus on reducing inequalities and digital exclusion), digital literacy and medical education and training”.
“By embracing digital innovations such as telemedicine, the use of mobile applications and the new uses of artificial intelligence, we are moving towards a future that increasingly aims to empower and encourage individuals to actively manage their health and illness,” she adds.
According to the professor, “as we navigate this complex system, at the intersection of innovation and the provision of care, it is essential to prioritize a collaborative and multidisciplinary effort, recognizing the ethical implications of innovation and ensuring a global commitment so that these advances do not exacerbate existing inequalities.”
In addition to her role as a researcher at CINTESIS@RISE, Ana Luísa Meves is a Visiting Assistant Professor at FMUP, director of the Global Digital Health Unit and Senior Clinical Lecturer in Digital Health at the Imperial College London.