Sierra Leone’s Chief Medical Officer, Dr Mustapha Kabba, has urged global health leaders to evaluate emerging technologies based on their ability to help health workers act swiftly to save lives. He made these remarks at the 6th UNGA Digital Health Symposium, focusing on healthcare innovation in low-resource settings.
Kabba stressed that the effectiveness of digital health systems and artificial intelligence should be measured by their support for timely clinical decision-making at the point of care. He highlighted the importance of timing in healthcare delivery, noting that the value of test results, referrals, and alerts is often contingent on how promptly they reach frontline workers. Technology’s true worth lies in its ability to facilitate immediate responses from health professionals.
He encouraged developers, investors, and policymakers to focus on digital tools that enhance decision-making rather than adding layers of disconnected data. Kabba also discussed Sierra Leone’s strides in health data integration, particularly through the National Health Information Hub, launched earlier this year by Health Minister Austin Demby. This platform aggregates data from health facilities and other sources to streamline visibility within the health sector.
The integration of health data will allow national and district teams to monitor health trends more effectively and allocate resources, addressing the ongoing fragmentation in reporting systems. Kabba called on global partners to ensure that new digital health tools align with existing national frameworks, warning against establishing parallel platforms that fail to bolster local capacities.
He concluded by posing a poignant question to developers and funders: “Whose work will improve, and how will we know?”
