Global Digital
Rehabilitation
SUMMIT 2026

AI-Powered Digital Rehabilitation for Universal Access

Join the #DigitalRehabilitation revolution! Connect with experts, explore groundbreaking innovations, and collaborate to transform lives through technology in multidisciplinary rehabilitation worldwide.

WHERE

Global Online Summit

WHEN

Tuesday, 17 November 2026

From 11:00 to 14:00 UTC

We look forward to having you join us for an inspiring day!

REGISTRATION

You are welcome to present your relevant research, innovation or project.

CALL FOR PRESENTATIONS

Rethinking Rehabilitation Access in the Digital Era

The Global Digital Rehabilitation Summit 2026 will explore how digital rehabilitation, including AI, can help close the gap between rehabilitation needs and access to services. It provides a space to share evidence, exchange ideas, showcase real-world examples, and discuss what meaningful implementation looks like across different countries and contexts.

The Global Digital Rehabilitation Summit 2026 builds on the success of the first-ever Summit, held in 2024. The event attracted more than 1,000 registered participants from around the world and brought together researchers, technology developers, rehabilitation and health professionals, policymakers, service users and other experts. In 2026, the Summit will continue this global exchange, with a stronger focus on how digital rehabilitation, including the responsible use of AI, can improve access, quality, equity and rehabilitation systems.

Rehabilitation needs are growing worldwide, but access to services remains limited for millions of people.

Shortages of rehabilitation professionals, the uneven distribution of services, high costs, and the inadequate integration of rehabilitation into health systems continue to leave many people with disabilities, injuries, neurological conditions, and chronic health conditions without the support they need to live, work, learn, and participate fully in society.

There is growing recognition that rehabilitation systems need new approaches that can expand access while maintaining quality and person-centred care.

Digital rehabilitation and artificial intelligence (AI) are increasingly being explored as part of this response. These tools have the potential to expand access, improve service delivery, strengthen decision-making, and help rehabilitation reach people in more flexible and sustainable ways.

Who should attend?

Researchers, academics, Rehabilitation and healthcare professionals, Technology developers, innovators, Health leaders and policymakers, international organizations and NGOs, Service providers, People with lived experience, Students and early-career professionals

Call for presentations: topics of interest

We welcome contributions showing how digital approaches can improve access, quality, equity, safety and sustainability in multidisciplinary rehabilitation. Artificial intelligence is an important area of interest, but the Summit covers the wider field of digital rehabilitation.

Contributions may present research findings, policy development, implementation experience, service models, workforce development, practical innovations or lessons from approaches that did not work as expected.

Submissions should be made under one of the following tracks:

Systems, policy and scale

  • Digital rehabilitation in national policies, health plans and service systems
  • Implementation, adoption and scale-up
  • Workforce capability and organisational change
  • Financing, governance, data protection and regulation
  • Partnerships and collaborative models for change

Practice, innovation and evidence

  • AI-powered rehabilitation and personalised support
  • Tele-rehabilitation, mobile services and hybrid care models
  • Digital self-management and other emerging technologies
  • Human-centred design, accessibility and service-user involvement
  • Outcomes, impact, cost-effectiveness and implementation learning

Across both tracks, contributions should consider equity, ethics, safety and local context.

Preliminary Program

  • 11:00–11:10 – Welcome and opening remarks
  • 11:10–11:25 – Global update: Access to rehabilitation, current gaps and health-system priorities 
  • 11:25–11:40 – Keynote: AI-powered futures: How artificial intelligence is transforming health, work and society 
  • 11:40–12:20 – Selected contribution presentations: Session 1
  • 12:20–12:30 – Break
  • 12:30–13:10 – Selected contribution presentations: Session 2
  • 13:10–13:50 – Panel discussion and Q/A): Reflections, lessons and future priorities for digital rehabilitation 
  • 13:50–14:00 – Closing remarks

Our aim

To support global learning and collaboration around digital rehabilitation and encourage practical approaches that improve access, strengthen systems, and support participation for people everywhere.

We look forward to welcoming participants from around the world to the Global Digital Rehabilitation Summit 2026.


Program (CET)

7:30 AM

Breakfast (on-site)

8:00 AM

Watch here

Opening Remarks

  • Mr. Kari-Pekka Murtonen
    Chief Specialist and Head of Global Action, Institute of Rehabilitation, JAMK University of Applied Sciences
  • Dr. Francois Uwinkindi
    Division Manager of Non-Communicable Diseases, Rwanda Biomedical Centre, Ministry of Health
  • Dr. Päivi Sillanaukee
    Special Envoy for Health and Well-being, Ministry for Social Affairs and Health of Finland

Global challenges in access to rehabilitation

Keynote speech

  • Dr. Michel Landry
    Professor at Western Norway University of Applied Sciences, President of World Physiotherapy

Radically increasing access and equality through digital rehabilitation

9:00 AM

Break

9:10 AM

Watch Parallel session 1 Watch Parallel session 2

Welcome to follow presentations on research, innovations, implementation cases, and projects related to digital rehabilitation.

10:25 AM

Break

10:30 AM

Watch here

In this session, you will gain exclusive insights into the activities of Rehalab in Jyväskylä, Finland, and the Digital Rehabilitation Hub in Kigali, Rwanda. Additionally, you can browse presentations showcasing the latest innovations in digital rehabilitation. Join us to discover how these initiatives are transforming the landscape of rehabilitation through technology, making it more accessible for individuals in need.

11:15 AM

Lunch break & open doors in Rehalab (on-site)

12:15 PM

Watch here

Join us for an engaging workshop where we will discuss and validate the digital-first model of rehabilitation. This is an excellent opportunity to deepen your understanding of current practices and explore future possibilities in digital rehabilitation. Your voice is vital in shaping the future of digital rehabilitation!

01:30 PM

Closing remarks and next steps 

Opening remarks and speakers

Mr. Kari-Pekka Murtonen

Chief Specialist and Head of Global Action, Institute of Rehabilitation, JAMK University of Applied Sciences
Mr. Murtonen, MSc in International Health, has a background as a physiotherapist and currently serves as the Chief Specialist and Head of Global Action at the Institute of Rehabilitation, Jamk University of Applied Sciences, in Jyväskylä, Finland. He has a strong track record in international health and multidisciplinary rehabilitation, having managed projects in over 20 countries. His additional technical expertise includes inclusive development, digital health and rehabilitation, and innovation ecosystem development.

Dr. Francois Uwinkindi

Division Manager of Non-Communicable Diseases, Rwanda Biomedical Centre, Ministry of Health
Since 2020, Dr. Francois Uwinkindi is the Non-Communicable Diseases (NCD) Division Manager at the Rwanda Biomedical Center (RBC), an independently governed coordination and implementation arm of the Rwanda Ministry of Health. He previously served as the Director of the Cancer Diseases Unit 2015-2019. Prior to joining the Cancer Control program, he spent five years working in national HIV control program with different roles and responsibilities in Prevention, Care & Treatment, Monitoring and Evaluation and Clinical Research. As a researcher, he has authored in more than 17 publications in peer reviewed scientific journals. In 2017, he received Cancer Young Leader Award from Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) over his achievements in cancer control in Rwanda Dr. Francois is responsible for coordinating all activities related to reducing the burden of NCDs in Rwanda, including cancer, cardiovascular disease, injury and disabilities, and diabetes, lung, renal and other metabolic diseases. Francois received his medical degree in 2008 and his Masters in Epidemiology in 2013 from the University of Rwanda.

Dr. Päivi Sillanaukee

Special Envoy for Health and Well-being, Ministry for Social Affairs and Health of Finland
Dr. Päivi Sillanaukee, Special Envoy for Health & Well-being of Finland, has over 20 years of experience in senior government and public sector roles. Actively engaged in Global Health, she has chaired global multisectoral Health Security collaborations from 2015 to 2021. Dr. Sillanaukee served as Vice chair and member of the WHO Executive Board (2018-2021) and as Executive President of the WHO/Europe Regional Committee (RC71) from 2021-2022. She is also a member of Women in Global Health, GlobalPulse, the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) Board, and The Global Agency for Responsible AI in Health (Health AI). An expert in Finnish legislative frameworks that, e.g. enable the secondary use of social and health data for innovation policies, R&D&I, and the implementation of digital and AI solutions as well as personalized medicine, Dr. Sillanaukee is skilled in health management, security, technology, and universal health coverage. She holds an MD, PhD, eMBA, and an honorary doctorate.

Dr. Antony Duttine

Technical lead (rehabilitation), World Health Organization (WHO)
Dr. Duttine is the technical lead for rehabilitation at the WHO headquarters in Geneva. In this role he coordinates WHO’s work on strengthening rehabilitation in health systems, including rehabilitation 2030 and the world rehabilitation alliance. Antony is a physiotherapist from the UK who holds a doctorate in public health and masters in development management. He has worked in numerous settings globally including in emergency and non-emergency contexts. Prior to joining WHO HQ team, he was the Regional advisor for disability and rehabilitation at the Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO).

Dr. Michel Landry

Professor at Western Norway University of Applied Sciences, President of World Physiotherapy
Michel Landry has more than 30 years of experience as a physiotherapist. He is the founder of an EdTech startup company, and is a professor at Western Norway University of Applied Sciences (Bergen, Norway) where he teaches in healthy aging and rehabilitation. His research focuses on global health, health policy, workforce and artificial intelligence. Prior to this, he was the chair of the department of physical therapy and associate dean for global health at Virginia Commonwealth University in the United States, and also spent a decade as division chief of the doctor of physical therapy division at Duke University, Durham, North Carolina in the United States.

Dr. Katariina Korniloff

Principal Researcher, Institute of Rehabilitation, JAMK University of Applied Sciences
Dr. Katariina Korniloff is a principal researcher at the Jamk Institute of Rehabilitation, and an adjunct professor of Exercise and Digital Rehabilitation at the University of Eastern Finland. She is leading and developing research activities in multidisciplinary rehabilitation in Jamk. Additional responsibilities include serving as the Vice Director of the Jamk Institute of Rehabilitation. She has nearly 20 years of experience in rehabilitation research focusing on digital rehabilitation competences and digital solutions in rehabilitation, health technology, physical activity, mental health, and musculoskeletal rehabilitation. In recent years, focus has been on developing digital rehabilitation services in low-resource settings in Eastern Africa and Southeast Asia.