Nations need to join forces to innovate in post-Covid-19 world: WHO official

The Covid-19 pandemic has made the need for innovation more immediate and drastic, said a senior World Health Organisation (WHO) official yesterday.

But the complexity of this process "cannot be understated", added WHO regional director for the Western Pacific region Takeshi Kasai, as he urged countries to work together to overcome challenges in a post-Covid-19 world.

Dr Kasai, speaking at the opening of the WHO's three-day virtual Innovation Forum, said the unprecedented pandemic has "upended the ways in which our societies operate, and how we perceive and value the health of ourselves and others".

"It has forced us to reprioritise issues, reoptimise systems and come up with ingenious ways of doing things and to take better care of the most vulnerable," Dr Kasai said.

The pandemic has forced many countries to innovate, he added.

One of them is Vietnam.

A top health official of the country cited how Covid-19 hastened its use of telemedicine to improve the quality and safety of its healthcare.

Said Dr Luong Ngoc Khue, general director of medical service administration in Vietnam's Health Ministry: "We have set up working groups consisting of the most experienced clinicians throughout the country to have real-time exchange of medical expertise among the experts to aid decision-making in treating Covid-19 patients."

Dr Khue said his government has since pushed for further digitalisation "in all aspects of life", including the healthcare sector, to ensure adequate and good-quality health services can reach those in need.

The forum, whose theme is Achieving The Health Future We Need, was moderated by Dr Gundo Weiler, WHO's director of data, strategy and innovation at the Western Pacific regional office.

He said the WHO will launch a regional innovation platform for the Western Pacific in the coming months to help member states in their healthcare innovation efforts.

"Innovation can no longer be a buzzword or something that is done by someone else. It is up to all of us to step up and engage with emerging technologies and developments," he added.

The WHO's Western Pacific region includes China, Japan, South Korea, Australia, Singapore, Indonesia and Vietnam, among others.

Dr Yasuyuki Sahara, the senior assistant minister for health security and technology at Japan's Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, spoke on his country's vision of the next phase of human society.

The phase is dubbed "Society 5.0", or the fifth type of society after hunter-gatherer, agricultural, industrial and information societies.

Technological advancement, which is swiftly accelerating, will play a key role in "Society 5.0", Dr Sahara said, and policymakers will need a clear picture of what it will look like to prepare for it.

Dr Sandro Galea, dean of Boston University's School of Public Health, noted that the world is growing increasingly urban.

This opens up possibilities for health-focused innovation in various areas, including affordable public transport, which brings health benefits such as reducing pollution and increasing physical activity.

Another speaker, former Singapore Nominated MP Kuik Shiao-Yin, stressed the importance of winning people's trust and making personal connections when pushing for innovation and organisational change.

Otherwise, there might be resistance, she said.