The World Health Organization (WHO) is seeking experts to serve as Members of the WHO Technical Working Group for addressing adolescents’ access to electronic health records in an ethical and developmentally appropriate way . This “Call for experts” provides information about the working group in question, the expert profiles being sought, the process to express interest, and the selection process.
Background
Security and privacy of online medical records have or will likely become a global issue for patients of all ages. As healthcare systems transition from usingtraditional written medical records to the use of electronic medical record systems, a complex set of challenges emerge. One core challenge is the use of online systems granting continuous access to personal medical health data from electronic health records (EHRs). Policy efforts are under way to ensure that EHRs contribute to people-centered health systems, public trust in digital health technologies is strengthened, digital health literacy at the population level is fostered, and awareness of patients’ rights raised. One should not, however, assume that these efforts would automatically benefit adolescents. In fact, digital technologies can perpetuate discrimination, and if adolescents are not taken into consideration when electronic systems are designed, there is the potential of harm. Critical aspects in relation to adolescents’ right to consent, access, share and use of information in their EHRs need to be carefully considered so that policies uphold adolescents’ rights to participation and best interest.
WHO intends to produce a guidance summarizing ethical principles and developmentally appropriate approaches in to inform policies with regards to adolescents’ access to EHRs. The aim of the guidance would be to support policy makers in adolescent health care, health care professionals, advocates, adolescent patients to advocate for, and support the implementation of, developmentally-appropriate solutions for adolescents access to EHRs.
As part of this project we want to establish a global Technical Working Group (TWG) that will support WHO during the process.
Functions of the Technical Working Group (TWG)
In their capacity as expert advisers, the members of the TWG have the following functions:
- Make recommendations to WHO on what are the critical questions to be addressed by the guidance
- Support WHO in planning and conducting evidence reviews to inform the guidance, and summarizing the results in scientific articles
- Participate in two virtual and one face-to-face meeting; and
- Upon request by WHO, review the summaries from evidence reviews, and provide specific advice on the outline of the guidance and iterative drafts.
The Concept Note of the proposed process to develop the guidance is available here.
Who can express interest?
The TWG is multidisciplinary, with members who have a range of technical knowledge, skills and experience relevant to adolescent health care, EHRs, human rights, ethics and adolescent health and development. Up to 20 Members may be selected.
WHO welcomes expressions of interest from scientists, healthcare professionals, or others with expertise in one or more of the following disciplines and technical area:
- Primary care, general practice, general pediatrics
- Adolescent health care, adolescent medicine
- The use of digital technology in health care, EHRs and systems
- Ethics, human rights and social sciences
- Digital health policy implementation
- Standards for digital technologies in health care and standards for EHRs
- Safety of security of health information
Submitting your expression of interest
To register your interest, please submit the following documents by 18 January 2025, 24:00h (midnight) Geneva time to baltagv@who.int copy moyseg@who.int and mehlg@who.int using the subject line “Expression of interest for the Technical Working Group on Adolescent EHRs ".
- A cover letter, indicating your motivation to apply and how you satisfy the selection criteria. Please note that, if selected, Membership will be in a personal capacity. Therefore, do not use the letterhead or other identification of your employer;
- Your curriculum vitae; and
- A signed and completed Declaration of Interests (DOI) form for WHO Experts, available at https://www.who.int/about/ethics/declarations-of-interest.
After submission, your expression of interest will be reviewed by WHO. Due to an expected high volume of interest, only selected individuals will be informed.
Important information about the selection processes and conditions of appointment
Members of WHO advisory and working groups must be free of any real, potential or apparent conflicts of interest. To this end, applicants are required to complete the WHO Declaration of Interests for WHO Experts, and the selection as a Member of an WG is, amongst other things, dependent on WHO determining that there is no conflict of interest or that any identified conflicts could be appropriately managed (in addition to WHO’s evaluation of an applicant’s experience, expertise and motivation and other criteria).
All WG Members will serve in their individual expert capacity and shall not represent any governments, any commercial industries or entities, any research, academic or civil society organizations, or any other bodies, entities, institutions or organizations. They are expected to fully comply with the Code of Conduct for WHO Experts (https://www.who.int/about/ethics/declarations-of-interest). WG Members will be expected to sign and return a completed confidentiality undertaking prior to the beginning of the first meeting.
At any point during the selection process, telephone interviews may be scheduled between an applicant and the WHO Secretariat to enable WHO to ask questions relating to the applicant’s experience and expertise and/or to assess whether the applicant meets the criteria for membership in the relevant WG.
The selection of Members of the TWG will be made by WHO in its sole discretion, taking into account the following (non-exclusive) criteria: relevant technical expertise; experience in international and country policy work; communication skills; and ability to work constructively with people from different cultural backgrounds and orientations. The selection of TWG Members will also take account of the need for diverse perspectives from different regions, especially from low and middle-income countries, and for gender balance.
If selected by WHO, proposed Members will be sent an invitation letter.
WHO reserves the right to accept or reject any expression of interest, to annul the open call process and reject all expressions of interest at any time without incurring any liability to the affected applicant or applicants and without any obligation to inform the affected applicant or applicants of the grounds for WHO's action. WHO may also decide, at any time, not to proceed with the establishment of the TWG, or disband an existing TWG.
WHO shall not in any way be obliged to reveal, or discuss with any applicant, how an expression of interest was assessed, or to provide any other information relating to the evaluation/selection process or to state the reasons for not choosing a Member.
TWG Members will not be remunerated for their services in relation to the work or otherwise. The appointment will be limited in time and is expected to commence in the first quarter of 2025 and end in the second quarter of 2026.
If you have any questions about this “Call for experts”, please write to moyseg@who.int well before the applicable deadline on 18 January 2025 24:00 (midnight) Geneva.