Koita Centre for Digital Health at Ashoka

Key Focus Areas

The key focus areas of the Centre are:

• Cutting-edge research that imagines and enables the desired future of digital health, such as digital twins
• Developing a world-class digital health curriculum suitable for broad-based education ranging from the history of medicine to the design of foundational artificial intelligence applications
• Creating a value-based health data ecosystem, along with other like-minded public or private organizations, to promote the common good while preventing individual harm
• Seeding a global-health hub that brings together the best minds globally to address problems of low-income nations via frugal innovation and mass empowerment through digital means

Academic Programmes

KCDH-A is introducing academic programmes at the undergraduate and PhD levels as well as an Executive Education programme in Digital Health.

• UG Courses in Digital Health are planned from 2024. KCDH-A courses will include foundational courses in human physiology to more advanced courses in data science in healthcare
• PhD Programme in Digital Health will be launched from 2024. KCDH-A will enroll PhD candidates with varied background across Engineers / Computer Science, Biology, and Medicine. Joint MD-PhD Programme will also be added to the curriculum over time

Healthcare Partnerships

We look forward to developing strong partnerships with large healthcare & technology organisations, universities and government health agencies to advance the overall vision and key focus areas of KCDH-A. Some examples of ongoing relationships are listed below:

• Partnership with Max Healthcare and MyHealthcare to develop personalised cardiometabolic risk assessment tools as well as their optimal management
• Partnership with data.org to create training modules in data science for health
• Partnership with global universities and other health-groups including Johns Hopkins, Stanford, Centre for Chronic Disease Control in the areas of generative AI, health recommendations, and wearables
• Participation in the Digital Transformation for Health Lab (DtfHL), with a vision to develop value-based approaches to governing health futures, putting young people at the centre

Faculty

The Ashoka faculty at KCDH-A, serves as the cornerstone, combining different disciplines—such as Computer Science, Biology, and Medicine—to create an intricate tapestry of expertise. This collaboration of scholars represents the essence of interdisciplinary brilliance, essential for comprehensively grasping and advancing Digital Health. By incorporating these essential disciplines, KCDH-A embodies an integrative approach, combining insights from various fields to offer a nuanced understanding of Digital Health.

Key Aspects of Our Faculty’s Contribution:

• Interdisciplinary Brilliance: Combining knowledge from various fields like technology, life sciences, healthcare, and social sciences to understand Digital Health comprehensively. This collaboration incorporates crucial social science perspectives, vital for understanding the human aspects of Digital Health.
• Curriculum Design: Faculty members curate an extensive curriculum, offering a holistic view of Digital Health, encompassing historical foundations and pioneering AI applications.
• Industry Integration: Collaborations with healthcare experts ensure a practical understanding, integrating real-world insights into academic modules for an enriched learning experience.
• Research Catalysts: Leveraging collective intellect, our faculty and industry partners drive groundbreaking research initiatives, propelling KCDH-A towards the forefront of healthcare innovation.