Islamabad : A national institution dedicated to digital health, telemedicine and artificial intelligence has been established under the patronage of the Ministry of National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination (MoNHSR&C), with health officials describing it as a major step towards integrating technology, research, innovation and workforce development to strengthen healthcare delivery in Pakistan.
To be known as the Pakistan Center for Digital Health (PCDH), the institution has been established through a memorandum of understanding signed between Digital Health Pakistan and the Health Services Academy in the presence of Federal Health Minister Syed Mustafa Kamal, Federal Secretary Muhammad Aslam Ghauri, senior ministry officials and heads of key national health organizations.
The move comes as Pakistan increasingly adopts telemedicine, artificial intelligence, electronic health records and digital disease surveillance systems to improve healthcare access, particularly in underserved and remote areas, while addressing growing demands for efficient and data-driven health services.
Officials said the centre would support national efforts to develop digital health policies, build technical capacity, generate local evidence and promote innovation in healthcare delivery. It is expected to serve as a platform linking government institutions, academia, healthcare providers, technology experts and development partners to accelerate digital transformation in the health sector.
The centre plans to focus on five broad areas: policy and strategy support, advocacy and collaboration, capacity building, digital health projects and initiatives, and research and evidence generation. Proposed activities include professional training programmes, digital health and artificial intelligence certifications, leadership fellowships, innovation challenges, knowledge-sharing platforms and support for national digital health frameworks.
The establishment of the centre also marks a significant milestone in the work of Prof Dr Zakiuddin Ahmed, founder of Digital Health Pakistan, who introduced the concept of telemedicine in Pakistan nearly three decades ago and has remained a leading advocate for digital healthcare services in the country.
In 2002, Dr Zakiuddin Ahmed organized Pakistan’s first National Telemedicine Conference in Karachi under the patronage of renowned scientist Prof Dr Atta-ur-Rahman, introducing technology-enabled healthcare to policymakers, clinicians and academics.
He later organized Pakistan’s first International Conference on Telemedicine and eHealth during Health Asia 2004, helping place digital health on the national healthcare agenda at a time when the concept remained largely unfamiliar in the country.
The same year, he initiated Pakistan’s first hub-and-spoke telemedicine network linking the then Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre in Karachi with healthcare facilities in Gambat and Shikarpur under the leadership of Prof Dr Rasheed Jooma.
The network enabled specialists in Karachi to provide consultations and clinical support to healthcare workers and patients in distant districts through telecommunications technology.
Public health experts say Pakistan’s digital health landscape has expanded rapidly in recent years, particularly after the Covid-19 pandemic accelerated the use of teleconsultations, remote healthcare services and digital disease surveillance. However, they note that the sector continues to face challenges related to coordination, standardization, interoperability and the absence of a comprehensive national digital health framework.
The centre will operate under the patronage of the Federal Minister of Health and the Ministry of National Health Services, while the Health Services Academy will serve as its host institution. The memorandum establishing the centre was signed by Prof Dr Zakiuddin Ahmed and HSA Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Shahzad Ali Khan during a ceremony at the Ministry of National Health Services attended by senior officials from the ministry, the National Institutes of Health, DRAP, IHRA, HealthRAB and other public-sector health organizations.
Health officials and digital health experts believe the new centre could help address longstanding gaps in Pakistan’s digital health ecosystem by providing a permanent institutional platform for policy development, research, innovation, professional training and collaboration among stakeholders working to modernize the country’s healthcare system.
