DURHAM – Chapel Hill nonprofit DHIT is hosting a conference to convene digital health leaders and stakeholders from around the world to discuss emerging opportunities for the future of health.

The 2019 DHIT Summit, titled Digital Health 360: Accelerating the Future of Health, takes place Wednesday, November 13, at Bay 7 on Durham’s American Tobacco Campus. The summit is the second annual program of its kind. Last year’s event was also held in November.

Organizers are expecting a turnout of around 200 attendees. The audience will include educators, researchers, payors and providers, entrepreneurs, technologists and investors from across the U.S., Canada and other regions worldwide.

DHIT, which is short for “Digital Health Institute for Transformation,” provides resources and support for startups and research projects in the digital health sector. The organization partners with universities, health associations and industry leaders to identify and capitalize on opportunities to help grow the local digital health ecosystem.

DHIT also hosts monthly happy hours around the Triangle. Starting in April 2019, DHIT expanded its happy hour series to Charlotte as well.

In September 2019, DHIT announced a partnership with the Government of Quebec to collaborate on boosting digital health innovation and entrepreneurship between Quebec and North Carolina. A delegation of Quebec-based research organizations and digital health startups are traveling to Durham this week to attend the summit.

University of Montreal Health Centre CEO Dr. Fabrice Brunet will headline the event as the keynote speaker.

There will be four panel sessions throughout the day. Broadly, the discussions will cover four encompassing topics: Education, research, quality improvement and commercialization. Here’s a rundown of the sessions and panelists:

  • Health technology education and the future of the health workforce, with leaders from Atrium Health, UNC’s Graduate School, Alamance Community College’s Biotechnology Center of Excellence, Elsevier Health International and Washington University in St. Louis’ Olin Business School.
  • Drug development and care delivery, with representatives from Pfizer, UNC-Chapel Hill’s Eshelman School of Pharmacy, Duke’s Clinical Research Institute and Johns Hopkins University.
  • Quality improvement and operating models, with speakers from the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, Intermountain Healthcare, Apollo Hospitals in India and Asheville’s Veterans Health Administration.
  • Commercialization of digital health products, featuring speakers from Pearson Health Tech Insights, the American Diabetes Association and Easterseals, Carium, Humana Medicaid Managed Care and Blue Cross & Blue Shield North Carolina.

Before lunch, there will be a “community reverse pitch,” in which UNC-Pembroke College of Health Sciences Founding Dean Todd Telemeco will lead a discussion on unmet healthcare needs in North Carolina. Attendees can help come up with solutions to those needs in an interactive “design thinking”-focused workshop taking place after lunch.

Attendees will have the opportunity to network between sessions. After the main event, there will also be a Digital Health Happy Hour from 5-7 p.m. at the Boiler Room.

On Thursday morning, DHIT will be hosting a “matchmaking” event for Quebec and North Carolina companies to meet and network.

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