Jonathan Cameron tells us how his department at the Scottish Government is driving digital health and care in Scotland
SCOTTISH GOVERNMENT
Jonathan Cameron tells us how his department at the Scottish Government is driving digital health and care in Scotland
Jonathan Cameron is the Interim Director for Digital Health and Care for the Scottish Government , responsible for the overall strategy for digital health and care across the whole of Scotland . His role includes the commissioning and delivery oversight of major programmes that improve the health and wellbeing of Scottish citizens through digital means , linking the health and care sectors and delivery partners from the statutory , private , third sector , innovation and academic fields . More recently , he has also been responsible for many of the COVID-19 digital tools and apps delivered to support the pandemic response , work that is also guided by the Digital Health & Care Strategy .
Cameron ’ s team ( made up of 76 staff - 26 of whom are Scottish Government employees ) advises Scottish ministers on policy and strategy , and ensures funding is effectively allocated to achieve ministerial priorities ; the Directorate has a budget of just over £ 100 million and responsibility for oversight of hundreds of millions of NHS IT spend .
Scotland has in fact been working on digital health approaches since the 1990s , beginning with the ambition to use eHealth . " For a long time , there ' s been a recognition of the importance of digital healthcare , not just for the day-to-day work of clinicians , but also just in terms of changing outcomes for patients and making a difference for healthier lives ," Cameron says . gov . scot 5