Mapping the Potential of eHealth: Empowering the Citizen through eHealth Tools and Services. Research Report presented at the eHealth Conference, Cork, Ireland, 5-6 May 2004

[Introduction]. This report has been drafted with the collaboration of a wide number of European actors in eHealth. Its purpose is to provide the visitors of the eHealth 2004 Conference and Exhibition – Empowering the European Citizen Through eHealth with an introduction to and overview of some of the key issues in eHealth. In Part One of Mapping the Potential of eHealth, we seek to identify the coordinates of eHealth in order to locate it on the European policy map. From there we aim to chart some of the main technical, social and political challenges which may impede the implementation of eHealth, before finally proposing some key policy arguments for addressing the challenges, so that European citizens can fully enjoy the wide range of benefits eHealth can offer. In Part Two, Empowering the Citizen through eHealth Tools and Services, we provide the visitors to the eHealth 2004 Conference and Exhibition – Empowering the European Citizen Through eHealth with an overview of the 109 submissions to the eEurope Awards for eHealth – 2004, and highlight a range of tools and applications which exemplify European best practice, while presenting some of the key learning points they provide for the development of eHealth in Europe.