“Has everyone caught the train?” As the digital transformation’s reach extends, we must consider if its rapid evolution in health and care encompasses all life aspects. Public health, especially, showcases significant evolution worth examining through its history and the achievements predating this swift change.

Many “heroes” stand out, exemplifying this journey, from Florence Nightingale to John Snow to Ignaz Semmelweis. Focusing on the latter two, John Snow’s act of removing the Broad Street pump handle during a cholera epidemic and Ignaz Semmelweis’s insights into puerperal fever prevention in Vienna showcase groundbreaking disruptions. These actions, along with Florence Nightingale’s battle against military practices to improve care for the sick and wounded, highlight the courage needed to effect real change.

Emerging from the COVID pandemic, a new era for public health appears, moving from passive observation to proactive engagement. Public health professionals, now with data theory among their core competencies, are redefining their approach to health improvement, especially in urban areas, by leveraging AI. This new direction in public health, focusing on data-driven decisions, will be a central theme at the Radical Health Festival in a session with the International Association of Public Health Institutes (IANPHI).

With data science aiding in pandemic surveillance, health security, and non-communicable disease care, public health is transitioning from a behind-the-scenes role to the engine room of healthcare policy. This transformation signifies that public health professionals are not just passengers but drivers of health policy innovation.

So, as public health takes its place at the policy table, we must ask ourselves: Are we on board with this journey of transformation and innovation in health?

– Dr. Charles Alessi,
Chief Clinical Officer of éditohealth and Steering Committee member of Radical Health Festival