Healthcare Israel: Innovation, technology, expertise to the world
“We are a government agency with a start-up soul."
By ALAN ROSENBAUMHealthcare Israel volunteers(photo credit: Courtesy)
“We are a government agency with a start-up soul,” says Hagai Dror, managing director of HealthCare Israel, one of the three winners of the 2019 InnoDip Award for innovative diplomacy. The award, established by the Abba Eban Institute for International Diplomacy at the IDC Herzliya, will be presented at the Jerusalem Post Diplomatic Conference on Thursday, November 21 in Jerusalem.Healthcare Israel was created by Israel’s Ministry of Health in 2016 to deliver life-saving and cost-saving healthcare innovation, technology and expertise to the world, and promotes cooperation and Israeli health system exports through collaborations between government, the health system and the healthcare industry. It has leveraged Israel's existing diplomatic ecosystem to reach out and create new kinds of international cooperation projects and business deals specifically in the healthcare space.HealthCare Israel is a small ten-person unit that is part of the Ministry of Health and has offices in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. It partners with numerous companies in the health care ecosystem that implement its objectives in countries around the world. Dror shares two examples of HealthCare Israel’s innovative projects that are being developed, in South America and in China.The public committee chaired by Amb. Ron Prosor, which chose HealthCare Israel as one of the winners, said that it “has groundbreaking thinking on how diplomacy should work in the 21st century. It has a clear objective which is achieved with dedication and innovative thought which is translated into wide scale of impact on people’s health around the world.”HealthCare Israel is currently building a platform for sharing health data between different health providers for the state of São Paulo, the largest and wealthiest state in Brazil. “We are bringing Israeli technology together with Israeli experience and know-how,” says Dror. “This platform will enable doctors will be able to see all of the health data and lab tests fromdifferent providers.” Dror explains that the improvements made to the Brazilian health care system will ultimately benefit the Israeli health care system in the development of Israel’s second-generation version of this program, which is already operative in Israel. “We are not only helping the world, and selling Israeli technologies, “says Dror, “but we will be bringing the benefits back to the Israeli public health system.”HealthCare Israel is also developing a project for the Chinese city of Yangzhou in the area of emergency preparedness for mass casualty incidents. “We signed an agreement between the Israeli and Chinese governments to promote and adopt Israeli technology in this area,” says Dror. HealthCare Israel will provide standard operating procedures on preparation for mass casualty incidents, including information technology (IT), appropriate Israeli medical devices, and training of Chinese personnel. HealthCare Israel has already made agreements to expand the project additional cities in China.Dror explains that one of the key advantages of HealthCare Israel is its ability to take technology, economics, and health care, and create a viable and beneficial product. “We mix them all together.”“We believe that life-saving healthcare is too important to keep to one country,” says Hagai Dror. “That is why Healthcare Israel is sharing it with the world.” The Abba Eban Institute view’s HealthCare Israel’s activities as an innovative partner in the world of international diplomacy.
