Trial by fire: How physicians responding to the COVID-19 pandemic illuminated the need for digital credentials

James Brogan; Henry Goodier; Manreet Nijjar; Christian Rose

doi:10.1177/20552076221084462

Trial by fire: How physicians responding to the COVID-19 pandemic illuminated the need for digital credentials

Digit Health. 2022 Mar 14:8:20552076221084462. doi: 10.1177/20552076221084462. eCollection 2022 Jan-Dec.

Authors

James Brogan¹, Henry Goodier², Manreet Nijjar³, Christian Rose⁴

Affiliations

¹ Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, USA.
² University Hospitals Dorset, Dorset, UK.
³ Whipps Cross University Hospital, Barts Health NHS Trust, London, UK.
⁴ Stanford University School of Medicine, Palo Alto, CA, USA.

Abstract

The current credentialing process for physicians struggled to accommodate fluctuating regional demands for providers during the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 pandemic. This hurdle highlighted existing inefficiencies and difficulties facing healthcare systems across the world and led us to explore how credentialing can be improved using digital technologies. We explain how this is a critical moment to make the shift from physical to digital credentials by specifying how a digital credentialing system could simplify onboarding for providers, enable secure expansion of telehealth services, and enhance information exchange.

Keywords: Digital health; general; health informatics; technology; telehealth; telemedicine.