Resilient Health: Chapter 7 - Digital health and human rights in an unequal world

As the global scramble into the digital age continues, the human rights discourse has been stretched to address the need for the protection and promotion of digital rights in what remains an unequal world. Though digital health technologies are revolutionizing access to and provision of quality health services, their potential to exacerbate existing systemic and structural inequalities is becoming more apparent. This chapter will explore three specific human rights concerns including the right to privacy, the geopolitical inequalities among countries that shape the digital ecosystem, and related algorithmic biases, through the lens of intersectionality. In addition, we argue against the one-size-fits-all approach to youth inclusion in the development and governance of digital health innovations. Finally, we introduce VOICE+, a digital hub inspired by the design justice movement.