• Global Health Equity Week

    November 10 - 14, 2025

    A global movement to turn equity from aspiration into action.

  • About Global Health Equity Week

    Access to health should not depend on where you live, who you are, or what resources you have. Yet inequities persist, shaped by social, economic, and structural barriers that limit potential and divide outcomes.

    Since 2019, HIMSS has piloted Global Health Equity Week (GHEW), because eliminating these structural challenges is at the core of our mission. As a global convener of healthcare professionals, innovators visionaries, and policymakers, we champion the belief that information and technology can and must advance equity.

    Born from the spirit of National Health IT Week, which HIMSS launched in 2006 to promote awareness of digital health innovation, GHEW represents the next evolution of that movement. What began as a call to recognize technology’s potential has become a call to ensure that every advancement in digital health contributes to more equitable access, outcomes, and opportunity.

    By transforming the systems, data, and decisions that shape the past, current and future states of health, GHEW reflects HIMSS’s vision to realize the full health potential of every human, everywhere.

    Thematic Focus

    Each day of GHEW focuses on a key dimension of progress, pairing insight with practical solutions that organizations can implement and measure.

    • Monday, November 10

      AI for Equitable Health Outcomes: Balancing Innovation with Impact

      Artificial intelligence is transforming healthcare, but without intention, it can also reinforce existing disparities. This theme explores how health systems, developers, and clinicians can embed equity into the design, deployment, and oversight of AI tools, ensuring smarter care that works for everyone.

    • Tuesday, November 11

      Veterans' Health Equity: Supporting Those Who Served

      Veterans face unique challenges when it comes to accessing care, navigating benefits, and transitioning into civilian health careers. This theme highlights efforts to bridge those gaps through mentorship, digital health education, policy advocacy, and technology solutions that honor their service with equitable support.

    • Wednesday, November 12

      Health Policy and Equity: Advancing Policy That Protects Access

      From national budgets to data privacy laws, public policy shapes who gets care and who gets left behind. As systems strain under political and economic pressures, this theme focuses on policies that protect vulnerable communities, expand digital access, and reinforce health equity as a core design principle.

    • Thursday, November 13

      Digital Inclusion and the Global Workforce: Closing Gaps in Access, and Opportunity

      A connected world demands a connected workforce. This theme champions global and local efforts to equip all health professionals with the tools, training, and infrastructure they need to thrive in a digital-first era.

    • Friday, November 14

      Data for Equity: Unlocking the Power of Health Informatics

      Health data can be a powerful force for change if it reflects the full picture. This theme centers on using health informatics, SDOH data, and governance frameworks to identify disparities, guide equitable interventions, and design systems that serve diverse populations with precision and care.

    • Get Involved

      • ✓

        Explore education sessions hosted by HIMSS and partners around the globe.

      • ✓

        Use our toolkits and leverage resources that turn ideas into measurable steps.

      • ✓

        Share your commitment and amplify impact using #HealthEquity.

      Together, we can close gaps, create opportunity, and build systems that uplift every community.

      If you have any questions, don't hesitate to reach out to us at ghen@himss.org.

  • Join us throughout Global Health Equity Week for a series of conversations, learning sessions and collaborative activities designed to advance equitable health outcomes around the world. Each day highlights a key focus area that shapes the global health landscape, from ensuring that AI is developed responsibly and inclusively, to strengthening support for veterans, advancing policy that protects access, expanding digital inclusion and workforce opportunity, and using data to drive measurable equity progress. 

    Explore the schedule, attend live and virtual events, and access tools and resources you can bring back to your organization and community. Together, we are turning shared intention into meaningful action.

    Monday, November 10

    AI for Equitable Health Outcomes: Balancing Innovation with Impact

    Artificial intelligence is transforming healthcare, but without intention, it can also reinforce existing disparities. This theme explores how health systems, developers, and clinicians can embed equity into the design, deployment, and oversight of AI tools, ensuring smarter care that works for everyone.

    • Global Perspectives on Implementing AI

      Explore how healthcare organizations around the world are adopting AI, highlighting readiness strategies, leadership roles, benefits, and common challenges.

      Keep reading

    • Bridging the Gap: Challenges in Evaluating AI Tools for Interpretation and Translation in Healthcare

      Review AI tools for language interpretation and translation in healthcare, highlighting language barriers, limits of current evaluation methods, and the need for standardized frameworks to ensure effectiveness and safety.

      Explore more

    • Inteligencia artificial abierta a la comunidad

      Software de código abierto y datasets transparentes potencian la investigación y desarrollo de la inteligencia artificial generativa en América Latina.

      Lea más

    • AI offers benefits for patient engagement, NYU research shows

      Dr. Jonah Zaretsky, medical director at NYU Langone Hospital Brooklyn, discusses his research into using artificial intelligence to translate patient chart notes into a reader-friendly format.

      Watch now

    • HIMSSCast: AI assurance labs could improve health equity

      Industry transparency and testing by artificial intelligence assurance labs could provide opportunities to develop tools and technologies that address healthcare inequities, says Brigham Hyde, CEO of Atropos Health.

      Listen now

    Tuesday, November 11

    Veterans' Health Equity: Supporting Those Who Served

    Veterans face unique challenges when it comes to accessing care, navigating benefits, and transitioning into civilian health careers. This theme highlights efforts to bridge those gaps through mentorship, digital health education, policy advocacy, and technology solutions that honor their service with equitable support.

    • FEATURED EVENT
      Honoring Service, Advancing Impact: Celebrating One Year of the HIMSS Veterans Community

      Join us this Veterans Day as we honor the service and contributions of our veteran members and celebrate the one-year anniversary of the HIMSS Veterans Community. This special webinar will spotlight the programs and opportunities available to veterans in health information and technology, including the Hero’s Welcome membership, the HIMSS Changemaker in Veteran Health Award, and our dedicated LinkedIn community.

    • Uncovering Insights: The Impact of Prehospital Data on Hospital Patient Care and Operations

      Learn how 100%-compliant EMS NEMSIS data, delivered via ImageTrend’s Health Information Hub, improves hospital operations, clinical readiness, and strategic planning.

      Register now

    • Coffee with the HIMSS Nursing Informatics Task Force: Leadership & Governance

      Join us for an interactive “Coffee Chat” where healthcare professionals will share leadership strategies, discuss governance in clinical informatics, and explore ways to drive meaningful change and collaboration in health technology.

      Explore more

    • Veterans’ Health: Resources and Ways to Stay Connected

      Connect and Build Community

      Stay in conversation with other veterans shaping the future of digital health:

      Professional Development and Career Tools 

      Explore pathways to grow your skills and expand career possibilities:

      Not a HIMSS Veteran Member Yet? 

      If you haven’t joined HIMSS, you may be eligible for a complimentary one-year membership through the Hero’s Welcome program. This includes access to professional development resources, networking opportunities, and ongoing community support. 

      Already a member? Invite a fellow veteran to join us.

    Wednesday, November 12

    Health Policy and Equity: Advancing Policy That Protects Access

    From national budgets to data privacy laws, public policy shapes who gets care and who gets left behind. As systems strain under political and economic pressures, this theme focuses on policies that protect vulnerable communities, expand digital access, and reinforce health equity as a core design principle.

    • Take Action with Legislative Advocacy

      During Global Health Equity Week, participation in these legislative advocacy campaigns is a powerful way to turn awareness into action, ensuring that policymakers understand and advance solutions that make equitable, technology-enabled care a reality for all. Together, these campaigns drive transformative change in digital health, championing three foundational pillars to realize the full health potential of every human, everywhere.

      1. Telehealth Access is at Rick: Urge your Senators and Representatives to extend current Medicare telehealth flexibilities, retroactively and for the long term. Patients and providers deserve certainty. Telehealth is health care, and we cannot go back.
      2. Ensure Tribal Communities' Access to Telehealth Tools: The Telehealth Access for Tribal Communities Act of 2025 will help ensure that access to audio-only telehealth services continues for Tribal Communities.
      3. Help Improve Maternal Health Outcomes Through Digital Health: Connected MOM leverages digital tools and connected ecosystems to improve outcomes for mothers and babies, integrating technology, social determinants, and care models to transform maternal health.

    • Bridging Policy & Practice

      Examine the gap between healthcare policy and digital health implementation, highlighting infrastructure, procurement, and governance challenges.

      Learn more

    • European Projects Insight Report

      Get strategic insights, systemic challenges and actionable recommendations derived from 12 EU‑funded digital health initiatives to guide policy makers, project consortia and innovation partners toward sustainable, cross‑border healthcare transformation.

      Get insights

    • Los Angeles LGBT Center ensures care for patients in uncertain times

      Gabriel Garcia-Lopez of the Los Angeles LGBT Center talks about how the center is partnering with Lambda Legal to challenge anti-LGBTQ executive orders, defend access to care for its transgender patients and protect their data.

      Watch now

    • Construcción de servicios integrados desde la perspectiva y complejidad latinoamericana

      Descubre cuales son los desafíos y potenciales tendencias futuras de la atención integrada en América Latina.

      Lea más

    Thursday, November 13

    Digital Inclusion and the Global Workforce: Closing Gaps in Access, and Opportunity

    A connected world demands a connected workforce. This theme champions global and local efforts to equip all health professionals with the tools, training, and infrastructure they need to thrive in a digital-first era.

    • HIMSS Foundation Professional Certification Grant

      In an effort to encourage and equip a diverse health information and technology workforce, the HIMSS Global Health Equity Network and the HIMSS Foundation have partnered once again to offer a professional certification grant to underrepresented professionals, students, and veterans and their spouses. Applications will be accepted through Tuesday, December 9, 2025. Learn more about the benefits of this program and apply today!

      Learn more

    • The HIMSS Clinician Burden Reduction Task Force Toolkit

      This toolkit provides healthcare leaders with practical surveys, action plans, workflow improvements, and documentation templates to identify and reduce clinician burden.

      Access now

    • Bridging the rural maternity care gap with telehealth

      Dr. Sy Saeed of the North Carolina Statewide Telepsychiatry Program talks about how the state's MOTHeRS Project has helped virtually connect high-risk pregnant women in rural areas to OB-GYN, mental health and diabetes care.

      Watch now

    • Using technology to bridge care gaps in Indigenous Canada

      Ivar Mendez, director of Canada's Virtual Health Hub, discusses how his organization's facility that is being built on Whitecap Dakota land will deliver virtual care to underserved Indigenous communities.

      Watch now

    • Building digital bridges to increase health equity

      Renee Broadbent, SoNE HEALTH's chief information officer, discusses a partnership initiative that aims to provide culturally sensitive care, reduce hospital stays and leverage digital tools to improve access to treatment.

      Watch now

    • Professional Development: Career Tools and Resources

      HIMSS offers exclusive resources and valuable content specifically curated to help your career and workforce development.

      For questions about HIMSS Professional Development, reach out to us at himssprofessionaldevelopment@himss.org.

    Friday, November 14

    Data for Equity: Unlocking the Power of Health Informatics

    Health data can be a powerful force for change if it reflects the full picture. This theme centers on using health informatics, SDOH data, and governance frameworks to identify disparities, guide equitable interventions, and design systems that serve diverse populations with precision and care.

    • Digital Maturity Forum

      The Digital Maturity Forum brings together digital health leaders across England to explore how to lead whole-system transformation from hospitals to neighbourhood care through data, interoperability, and system-wide collaboration.

      Register now

    • Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) series

      Explore how nurses and health systems can address social determinants of health (SDOH) through patient-centered care, organizational strategies, and interoperable health IT to advance health equity and improve outcomes.

      Part 1
      Part 2
      Part 3

    • Pulse Check: Where are we with Social Determinants of Health (SDOH)?

      Examine how organizations and communities are addressing social determinants of health, highlighting evidence-based strategies and best practices to improve healthcare access for underserved populations.

      Watch now

    • An economic imperative to invest in women's health

      Investing in women's health is not just a matter of improving healthcare outcomes – it's a smart economic strategy with significant benefits.

      Keep reading

    • Leveraging population health data to determine patients' needs

      Studying data from a clinic serving high-risk Medicaid patients helped Davies Awardee Dr. Robert Jarve and his team from Corewell Health understand what's driving most of the clinic's ED utilization.

      Watch now

    • Alvaro Queijo: “La transformación digital no es solo para lograr sistemas de salud más eficientes; es el medio para potenciar derechos, mejorar resultados clínicos y fortalecer la equidad”

      En un contexto de cambio político y desafíos crecientes en la región, Uruguay proyecta una nueva etapa en su estrategia de salud digital. Para conocer la visión del sector tecnológico, conversamos con Álvaro Queijo, director de Apraful, empresa referente en tecnología para la gestión de la salud, con más de 30 años de trayectoria.

      Lea más

  • Global Health Equity Week Toolkit

    The Global Health Equity Week Toolkit provides messages, graphics, and resources to help you spark conversations, share insights, and champion equitable health in your community or organization. Use these materials to promote events, engage your networks, and support meaningful action throughout the week.

    About Global Health Equity Week

    Access to health should not depend on where someone lives, their background, or what resources they have. Yet inequities continue to shape outcomes around the world. Global Health Equity Week (GHEW) is a coordinated call to action, bringing together healthcare professionals, innovators, policymakers, and community advocates to build systems of care that are fair, inclusive, and designed for everyone.

    This year’s core themes are:

    • AI for Equitable Health Outcomes

      Balancing innovation with responsibility 

    • Veterans’ Health Equity

      Supporting those who served

    • Health Policy and Access

      Advancing policies that protect and advance equitable care

    • Digital Inclusion and Workforce

      Ensuring access, skills, and career pathways

    • Data for Equity

      Using informatics to identify gaps and drive measurable progress

    Born from the legacy of National Health IT Week, which spotlighted how digital health can improve care, GHEW advances that mission by focusing on accountability and impact. Throughout the week, we examine how technology, policy, workforce development and data can drive measurable equity, and we share practical tools organizations can use to make meaningful change in their communities.

    GHEW is more than awareness. It is a shared commitment to learn, implement, measure, and transform.

    Learn more and take action at www.himss.org/ghew.

    Toolkit assets