Community Engagement and Involvement (CEI) Meeting

Community Engagement and Involvement (CEI) Meeting – Batticaloa

An in-person Community Involvement and Engagement (CIE) session for the DIGIPATHS project was held on 12 May 2025 at the Holistic Care Centre, Faculty of Medicine, Eastern University, with 40 participants including community healthcare workers, primary care doctors, patients, and their relatives. Facilitated by Dr. N. Shobana and Dr. S. Kumaran, the session introduced the DIGIPATHS initiative, which aims to develop a Digitally Integrated Care Pathway (DICP) using electronic patient records (e.g., OpenMRS) to improve the management of multiple long-term conditions such as diabetes and hypertension in Sri Lanka. Emphasizing co-design, the project positions community members as equal partners whose lived experiences inform the design, implementation, and scalability of standardized, patient-centred digital care pathways.

The session engaged participants in structured group activities to share experiences with existing guidelines, identify strengths and gaps in primary care, and prioritize feasible improvements. Using silent idea generation, round-robin sharing, clarification, and group voting, participants collaboratively reviewed diabetes and hypertension guidelines, leading to constructive dialogue and shared learning despite occasional differences in viewpoints. Feedback indicated high satisfaction, improved understanding of guidelines, and appreciation for inclusive decision-making. Key follow-ups include organizing NCD screening programs at the Holistic Care Centre and planning the next CIE meeting in at Sabaragamuwa University of Sri Lanka.

Community Engagement and Involvement (CEI) Meeting – Sabaragamuwa

Exploring the Acceptability of Introducing Electronic Health Records (EHR) Among Patients with Multiple Long-Term Conditions in Primary care

The CEI meeting was held on 2nd of Nov 2025 at CEI 2Board room, Faculty of Medicine, Sabaragamuwa University of Sri Lanka.

 Community representatives, Community connectors, caretakers, family members and patients from north, east, west, southern, north-central and central regions of Sri Lanka were invited for the discussion. Theoretical Framework of Acceptability (TFA) provides a rigorous, multi-dimensional structure to systematically investigate the complex perceptions of target group. Integrating this framework with the specific context operationalized with seven core constructs. This was selected to study the objective. Overall introduction was given by the work package lead and other primary care doctors as dramatic performance followed by stimulation activates conducted by CEI coordinator.

Demonstration of Electronic Health Record (EHR) was demonstrated to the participants and it was opened for focus group discussion in Tamil and Sinhala languages separately according to the participants convenience. It was lasted for one hour and 30 minutes. The session was concluded with thanking note.

Community Engagement and Involvement (CEI) Meeting – Colombo (15.02.2026)

The Community Engagement and Involvement (CEI) meeting for the Western Province was held on 15 February 2026 in Colombo with 35 participants, including community members, patients, caregivers, and healthcare staff. The meeting aimed to ensure that the DIGIPATHS digital healthcare system is designed based on the real needs and experiences of its users.

The session included an introduction to the project, interactive group activities, a drama performance illustrating healthcare challenges, and an open discussion where participants shared feedback on system usability and accessibility. A presentation on the importance of community involvement in research further highlighted its role in improving relevance and impact.

 

All island CEI  Meeting
Co-designing the Future of Digital Primary Care: Community Voices for Better Health Systems

The stakeholder engagement event, “Co-designing the Future of Digital Primary Care: Community Voices for Better Health Systems,” was held on 24 May 2026 at the Galle Face Hotel, Colombo, as part of the DIGIPATHS project. The event brought together Community Engagement and Involvement (CEI) Patient Forum members from across Sri Lanka, community representatives, researchers, and project staff to contribute to the co-design and implementation of digital primary healthcare solutions.  

The programme commenced with opening remarks by Prof. S. Kumaran, Country Lead of DIGIPATHS, who highlighted the importance of community participation in developing equitable and patient-centred digital health systems. Mr. J. Jude Walton, President of the CEI Patient Forum, shared his personal experiences and reflections on the value of patient involvement in health research and service development. The keynote address, delivered by Prof. A. Sumathipala, focused on strengthening Community Engagement and Involvement and emphasized the critical role of community voices in improving health outcomes and ensuring the sustainability of healthcare interventions.

The scientific session featured presentations by Dr. W. W. Supun, Work Package 2.2 Lead, who demonstrated the redesigned Electronic Health Record (EHR) system and integrated Decision Support System (DSS), highlighting how community feedback from the previous all-island CEI session had been incorporated into the updated design. In the afternoon session, Ms. S. Tamilchelvi, Implementation Research Fellow of DIGIPATHS, presented the proposed implementation operational workflow for integrating the EHR and DSS into routine primary healthcare services. Interactive discussions enabled participants to provide feedback on system usability, accessibility, implementation challenges, and recommendations for strengthening digital primary care delivery across Sri Lanka.