El Salvador launches DoctorSV, a pioneering digital health system in the world

The Government of El Salvador, together with CAF, Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean, and Google, announced the launch of DoctorSV, a healthcare project that transforms the national system and makes comprehensive medical care available to the entire population, reducing waiting times and eliminating the need to travel.

"This initiative demonstrates how the way health care is delivered can be structurally transformed. El Salvador has achieved what continues to be a challenge for many countries: to build a universal, sustainable health system based on cutting-edge technology, without compromising public finances," said Pablo Bartol, manager of Social and Human Development at CAF.

A model with potential for replication throughout the region

DoctorSV not only modernizes the Salvadoran healthcare system, it becomes a reference for other countries facing the same structural challenges: fiscal limitations, the need to expand coverage and the urgency to improve the quality of services.

Among the most relevant advances are:
- Increased diagnostic assertiveness to more than 93% after the incorporation of artificial intelligence to support health professionals, increasing their diagnostic accuracy and freeing time for human attention.
- An ecosystem that allows health care in real time from anywhere in the country, reducing travel and waiting times.
- A system based on data and advanced analytics that improves decision-making, reduces errors and optimizes the use of public resources.
- Automation and continuity of care, allowing each stage of the process - diagnosis, treatment and follow-up - to be integrated and traceable.
- Active participation of the patient, who evaluates the services received, promoting a culture of transparency and continuous improvement.

The comprehensive approach of the initiative allows strengthening and expanding the first level of care, based on the principles of health promotion and prevention.

Evidence shows that technology is the most cost-effective way to advance towards universal health coverage, a central objective for development. The experience in El Salvador serves as a basis for supporting other countries seeking to transform their health systems with innovation, sustainability and inclusion.