Digital technologies have the potential to bring about enormous long-term improvements in health for everyone. However, without the involvement of people from diverse communities in decisions regarding the way digital health technologies are designed, developed, and introduced into healthcare systems such as the NHS, there is a danger that digitalisation will become a barrier for digitally excluded groups to access the health care they need.

​

Involving users as co-creators and co-innovators in the design and development of digital technologies can reduce the dangers of social and health exclusion brought about by digitalisation. However, for communities to get involve in co-innovation it is necessary to create institutional spaces for user-participation in co-innovation such as forums for citizen participation, organisational cultures able to listen to the needs and concerns of communities, positive attitudes to innovation, and trust.