In February 2025, the World Health Organisation (WHO) Regional Office for Europe designated the European Campus Rottal-Inn (ECRI) at the Deggendorf Institute of Technology (THD) as the German WHO Collaborating Centre for Digital Health.
This makes ECRI one of the 32 current WHO partners collaborating centers in Germany – and the only centre on Digital Health Education.
The designation is initially valid for four years and can be extended.
about the center
The WHO Collaborating Centre for Digital Health Education, Research & Development at the European Campus Rottal-Inn supports WHO in advancing Digital Health globally.
Key activites
Digital Health Policy & Strategy
Provide WHO with data, analyses, and technical expertise to support the strengthening of Digital Health systems by identifying policy gaps, improving Digital Health and ethical frameworks, and contributing to the revision of a toolkit for planning, implementing, and evaluating Digital Health systems.
Education & Capacity Building
Support WHO in strengthening Global Digital Health Literacy by developing training and e-learning materials, delivering capacity-building activities, and creating educational resources in line with WHO policies and procedures.
Research on Digital Health Interventions
Conduct research and provide technical input, data, and evaluation methodologies to assess the health impact of Digital Health interventions and support WHO research projects.
contact
Head of WHO Collaborating Centre: Prof. Dr Georgi Chaltikyan
Researchers: Fara Fernandes, Jishen Pfeiffer, Eugenia Lvova
You can find out more about WHO Collaborating Centres here: https://www.who.int/europe/about-us/partnerships/partners/collaborating-centres
Achievements in 2025-2026
Digital Health Policy & Strategy
The centre supported WHO Europe in strengthening Digital Health policies and implementation by contributing to the WHO Digital Health Information Systems (d-HIS) toolkit, particularly on workforce development and user education.
It also provided technical input on health workforce optimization and reviewed the draft European Roadmap for Action on Artificial Intelligence in Health (2026–2033).
Through the Erasmus+ Xpanding Innovative Alliance (XiA), the centre is contributing to the alignment of European Health Data Space (EHDS) capacity-building activities with WHO Europe’s priorities for Digital Health workforce development and is facilitating ongoing collaboration between XiA partners and WHO Europe.
Digital Health Literacy & Training
The centre supported WHO’s Digital Health Literacy and Capacity-Building agenda through training events and knowledge exchange. The ongoing DigiHealthDay series (since 2020) is aligned with the Regional Digital Health Action Plan. The centre also contributed to workforce capacity building by presenting “Workforce Development for Digital Health Systems” at the WHO HRH Symposium in Copenhagen (April 2025) and delivering the session “Workforce Preparation for Digital Health Systems” at the WHO Europe Impact Training for Big Data in Healthcare in Valencia (June 2025).
Research on Digital Health interventions
The centre contributed to WHO’s evidence agenda on Digital Health Interventions through synthesis publications that translate research into practical frameworks.
International collaboration & networks
The centre participates in the Network of WHO Collaborating Centres on Training and Education and maintains active collaborative ties with other WHO CCs in the European Region to advance shared competency frameworks and interoperable curricula.
The centre delegates participated in the First Global Forum of WHO Collaborating Centers (Lyon, April 2026).