Advancing Methods and Approaches for the Evaluation of Digital Health, Volume II

This Research Topic is Volume II of a series. The previous volume can be found here: Advancing Methods and Approaches for the Evaluation of Digital Health Digital health technologies span a broad spectrum, including applications for risk reduction and self-management, electronic health records, e-prescribing systems, telemedicine platforms, surgical robotics, and AI-driven image analysis and decision support tools. As a rapidly expanding sector, digital healthcare represents both a major economic activity and a significant cost driver for health systems. Despite this growth, persistent uncertainty remains regarding how best to design, evaluate, and select technologies that are both safe and cost-effective.Although numerous evaluation methods are currently employed in health technology assessment, traditional approaches particularly randomized controlled trials (RCTs), face notable limitations when applied to dynamic, rapidly evolving digital interventions. When implemented prematurely, RCTs may fail to capture the true potential of a technology, for instance by producing null results due to unresolved usability issues rather than a lack of clinical effectiveness.This highlights the need to reconsider and broaden the methodological toolkit used in digital health evaluation. A comprehensive approach should encompass both formative and summative methods, as well as qualitative and quantitative designs, applied appropriately across different stages of the technology lifecycle. Moreover, there is increasing value in integrating methodologies from disciplines beyond healthcare—such as ethnography, psychology, economics, and econometrics to better capture the complexity of digital interventions. Relevant approaches may include, but are not limited to, Wizard-of-Oz experiments, user-centered design methodologies, within-subject before–after studies, intervention modelling, stepped wedge, logic models and instrumental variable analyses. We invite contributions that critically examine the suitability and limitations of existing evaluation methods in digital health, supported where possible by empirical evidence. Submissions may also propose novel methodological frameworks or adapt approaches from other disciplines, provided they are rigorously justified.The overarching aim of this research topic is to advance the field of digital health by promoting the development and application of more robust, context-sensitive evaluation methodologies. To this end, we encourage the reporting of both successful and unsuccessful methodological applications, particularly where failures arise from evaluation design rather than intervention performance.This collection prioritizes methodological inquiry over outcome-focused studies. Submissions should explicitly address the strengths and limitations of evaluation approaches in digital health. Studies that focus solely on evaluating specific interventions without methodological reflection will be considered for other sections of the journal.Topics of interest include, but are not limited to:- Innovative designs and adaptations of randomized controlled trials;- Point-of-care and pragmatic trial designs- Strategies to enhance feasibility of conventional RCTs (e.g., novel recruitment approaches);- Smart, Advanced and adaptive randomization techniques;- Process evaluations, including cost–benefit analyses;- Multiphase optimization strategy (what works best for whom and why). Topic editors: Linda W.P. Peute, Toshiyo Tamura Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/80869/advancing-methods-and-approaches-for-the-evaluation-of-digital-health-volume-ii