Regulation, assessment, and adoption of digital health technologies in Canada

Healthcare systems and organizations, industry, and the public call for support in navigating digital health technologies (DHTs). The authors critically assessed the regulations for DHTs in the U.S., the U.K., and Canada and the DHT-specific health technology assessment (HTA) guidelines, frameworks, and toolkits to describe the current state of practice and propose considerations for future work in Canada. Reflecting on the reviewed literature, they suggest that a thoughtful and systematic approach is required to meaningfully advance the digital health agenda while considering the Canadian context in terms of (1) decentralized regulation, assessment, and decision-making processes and (2) geographic, cultural, and historical aspects and health disparities. Given this context, national approaches and centralized leadership would be beneficial to facilitate efficient and evidence-based adoption of DHTs.