The introduction of digital approaches is perhaps the most significant change to the way that healthcare research is conducted that has been seen since computers first came into use. This introductory chapter will set the tone for the rest of the book. The book is divided into two parts: 1. digital platforms, and 2. approaches to healthcare research that are either uniquely digital or are adaptations of existing approaches to the online context. Within each of these parts, a collection of chapters by distinguished and rising authors present digital platforms and techniques and consider these as applied to a wide range of healthcare studies. This introduction will consider the broad area that the book addresses and will similarly be divided into the same two sections. The unique aspects of digital research approaches will be highlighted and emphasised, and the reader will be prepared for the chapters that follow.