Verantwoordelijk Ontwerp van Digitale Gezondheidsapplicaties

Health systems worldwide face significant challenges in delivering adequate, accessible, and efficient care. In this course, students will explore the potential of Digital Health Technologies (DHTs)—including digital health apps, platforms, wearables/ smartwatches, AI-driven analytics, and conversational agents—to enhance healthcare by making it more inclusive, patient-centered and effective.

Students will examine how DHTs can empower patients in self-care, support clinical decision-making, and reduce the burden on healthcare services. However, the adoption of these technologies also raises critical ethical and social challenges, such as concerns about equity and inclusivity, patient safety, patient trust, and engagement. Without careful design, DHTs risk reinforcing disparities and facing resistance from both patients and healthcare providers.

Students will evaluate how to address these challenges, including using methods such as user-centered design, participatory methods, universal design, ethical analysis and stakeholder analysis, ensuring that diverse perspectives and ethical principles are incorporated throughout the design process of digital health applications. Through real-life case studies, students will learn about successful development of DHTs, while also highlighting key ethical and social barriers.

Students will analyze a digital health case study using a combination of guidelines for ethics in AI for healthcare, user-centered, and responsible design principles, and stakeholder analysis. Imagine you are advising a digital health start-up on navigating the ethical and social complexities of DHT development—what strategies would you recommend?

This course provides a critical perspective on the role of digital health technologies in the future of healthcare.