Code for Pakistan and Pakistan’s National Institute of Health (NIH) are collaborating on a three-month pilot program aimed at co-creating digital technology to help the nation’s most established health institution make better use of their resources, improving quality, efficiency, and ultimately, the experience of every patient. The new technologies derived from the program will also help to bring about better integration of care, and improve the health of the wider population in Pakistan.
The seven TECH-NIH Fellows for 2021 have been identified after a rigorous application and interview process that was designed specifically to identify talented technologists whose insights, learnings, and broad visions will strengthen the institution. They will be responsible for conducting user research, product development, and improving service delivery, based on the needs of the NIH.
Of the program, Chief Information Officer at the NIH, Muhammad Khan says, “TECH-NIH is proud of the diversity we have on our team. We have a talented staff that is specialized in several areas of Information Technology, but what we needed was a strong software development arm. This Fellowship that we have put together with Code for Pakistan’s support is a real game-changer for all of us, and we at the NIH are all looking forward to working with our Fellows on several software applications that are critical and would hugely contribute towards much-needed health initiatives in our country.”
Ali Raza, Code for Pakistan’s Director of Technology, said, “We are so proud of the lead that the NIH has taken in digitizing health services, and we’re eager to see what can come from this three-month pilot program. As the pandemic continues, our hope is that the NIH sees enough value in this Fellowship to carry it forward and lead the country towards greater innovation.”
Pakistan IT exports surged by 46% in July-August 2021