Technology-push risk screening for sustainable digital health adoption at the Uganda Cancer Institute: a design-stage research note aligned with SDG 3.8

Abstract Objective Digital health can contribute to stronger and more equitable health services, yet technologies introduced because they are externally funded, vendor-promoted or administratively driven may be poorly aligned with local need, user participation and institutional readiness. This research note describes a design-stage Technology Push Mitigation Framework for pre-deployment digital-health decision-making at the Uganda Cancer Institute (UCI) and positions its intended contribution against Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 3, particularly target 3.8 on universal health coverage. Results Evidence was triangulated from global digital-health guidance, Uganda policy and standards, UCI-specific studies, and recent LMIC implementation literature. The resulting artefact has three layers: a technology-push risk screen, a four-domain readiness assessment, and a decision/escalation pathway. Six technology-push indicators and four readiness domains are operationalised, leading to three provisional decisions: proceed, revise/mitigate, or defer/escalate. The framework has not yet been empirically validated and does not demonstrate improved adoption or SDG outcomes. A staged validation pathway is specified for future empirical research.