Thank you, Madam Chair.
I want to begin by thanking our witnesses for providing us with information about innovation, about repercussions on health promotion and, ultimately, about the Canadian health care system.
We know that the aging population and chronic diseases are a considerable burden for the Canadian health care system. I listened carefully to what Ms. Elmslie said about the experiment that was conducted as part of CANRISK. I think this is a brilliant approach, and I know it is promising. However, as things currently stand, I am worried about certain generations. As Dr. Selby rightly pointed out, not all generations are keeping up with the computer evolution. I can confirm that, as my son is more computer literate than I am.
Some of the new technologies used to support the management of chronic diseases can represent obstacles for patients because basic computers knowledge is required. People also need to have access to computers or other digital technologies. That obstacle has been referred to as “the digital divide”, which has to do with patients' economic status. Some technologies can involve costs for patients, such as Internet access charges or the purchase of smart phones.
Based on your experience in innovation, would you say that patients have to be computer literate to be able to use those technologies?
Do patients have to incur the costs of using those applications? If so, what, if any, financial assistance is provided to low-income patients?