The Innovating Digital Health Solutions (IDHS) program is designed to encourage applications from Ontario Health Teams (OHTs), inclusive of Indigenous Health Care Organizations and other health service providers [HSPs] to work in collaboration with Ontario based technology vendors in evaluating, adopting, and implementing digital health technologies. 

IDHS is a program of the Government of Ontario’s Ministry of Health (MOH), administered by the Ontario Centre of Innovation. 

IDHS is designed to encourage and foster partnerships between Ontario Health Teams and Ontario-based Technology Vendors to evaluate, adopt, and implement market-ready innovative digital health and/or virtual care solutions that address Ontario’s health system priorities and to drive collaboration that improves patient outcomes, optimizes the impact of investment in health innovation and supports the opportunity to scale health innovation.

Through the program, the Ministry of Health sets health priorities to focus innovation to address specific health outcomes. The health priority areas for IDHS were determined through the Challenge Statement Workshops which will support and align to the Digital First for Health Strategy. The challenge statements that arose from those workshops are:

1. Deliver patient centred care to patients and families by:
   
   • Enabling them to manage their health in the home or community by improving equitable access to innovative digital solutions
   • Enhancing chronic disease care through advanced digital health solutions.
     
2. Achieve efficient and coordinated services by:
   
   • Increasing adoption, scale, and consistently spread digital solutions that streamline the process, improve workflow.
   • Establishing innovative change management supports for implementing digital solutions (e.g., ensuring the fit of the digital solution to current clinical pathways and developing a plan to utilize and manage patient-generated data).

Projects must be led by one or more Ontario Health Teams (OHTs) or publicly funded Health Service Providers (HSPs) and include a response that supports one of the challenge statements of the health system priorities.

Best suited for:

Ontario Health Teams, inclusive of Indigenous Health Care Organizations, such as those serving First Nations, Inuit, Métis and Urban Indigenous persons.
Ontario Based Technology Vendors

Collaborative Project Teams are made up of: 

• Applicant: One or more Ontario Health Teams (OHTs), inclusive of Indigenous Health Care Organizations, such as those serving First Nations, Inuit, Métis and Urban Indigenous persons.  OHTs are groups of Health Service Providers (HSPs) and organizations that at maturity will be clinically and fiscally accountable for delivering a full and coordinated continuum of care to a defined geographic population in Ontario. 

• Technology partner is an Ontario-based for-profit digital health technology business providing an innovative solution to the challenge statement. The for-profit businesses may be of any size (start-up, small- to medium-sized enterprise, and multinational enterprise) with a research and development, and/or manufacturing presence in Ontario and must have commercial capacity to deliver the project. 

• Other partners:  Other partners such as community-based organizations and implementation teams are strongly encouraged to engage one or more OHTs/HSPs, who can provide sector expertise to ensure project implementation meets sector and local needs.’ 

Reference documents:

• Sample Application Form
• Eligible Expenses Guidelines          
• Funding Agreement                                                                                                                                                
• Ontario Health Teams, Ontario Health Teams | ontario.ca
• Ontario Health Teams The Path Forward, https://health.gov.on.ca/en/pro/programs/connectedcare/oht/docs/OHT_path_forward.pdf   
• Digital Health Playbook, https://health.gov.on.ca/en/pro/programs/connectedcare/oht/docs/dig_health_playbook_en.pdf 
• Digital Standards in Health Care, https://www.ontariohealth.ca/system-planning/digital-standards