Launch of the smartHEALTH European Digital Innovation Hub
A one-stop-shop for Smart Health
16-02-2023
The European Digital Innovation Hub for Smart Health, smartHEALTH EDIH, in which "Athena" RC is a partner, was launched with an opening event in late January. The aim of the smartHEALTH Hub is to provide a "one-stop-shop" where start-ups, SMEs, medium-sized enterprises, and the public sector can seek help in improving their business and production processes, as well as their products and services, using AI, Cybersecurity, and High Performance Computing technologies. This initiative aims to respond to challenges and contribute to achieving EU goals.
The smartHEALTH Hub offers specialized expertise in the fields of precision medicine, cancer, medical image analysis, and the digital transformation of the public sector and infrastructure, through the most prominent representatives of Research & Innovation in the Greek digital and smart health ecosystem.
On January 26th and 27th, 2023, the smartHEALTH partners convened at the Foundation for Research and Technology (FORTH), the project coordinator, for the inaugural event of the Hub. The opening event was led by Prof. Dimitrios Plexousakis, Director of the Informatics Institute of the Foundation for Research and Technology. The event was attended by Mr. Christos Dimas, Deputy Minister of Research and Technology, and Mr. Antonios Papaderakis, Deputy Regional Governor of the Region of Crete, who gave welcoming speeches.
Ms. Helena Rodrigues, Project Officer of the European Commission, presented the EU's EDIH initiative, while Mr. Antonios Stassis, Director General of Digital Governance, General Secretariat of Digital Governance & Process Simplification, Ministry of Digital Governance, discussed the opportunities and challenges for digital transformation in Greece. Lastly, Mr. Dimitrios Katehakis, Director of the Hellenic Digital Health Cluster, presented the innovation capabilities and development needs of business in the field of Digital Health.
The opening event ended with Prof. Dimitrios Plexousakis' brief presentation of the project's goals and next steps, followed by a project meeting where Hub partners discussed management and implementation issues, set goals for the first year of operation, and planned next steps.
The European Digital Innovation Hub for Smart Health - smartHEALTH is co-funded by 50% from the European Commission, through the Digital Europe program.