Health First Europe

PRESS RELEASE: Health First Europe launches a trailblazing Insight Report on Better Screening and Secondary Prevention in Europe

Health First Europe launches a trailblazing Insight Report on Better Screening and Secondary Prevention in Europe

Brussels, 17 September 2021 – For World Patient Safety Day, Health First Europe (HFE) published a comprehensive Insight Report entitled “The Compelling Case for Better Screening and Secondary Prevention in Europe: Lessons From Five Representative Diseases” that affect millions of European citizens each year and how the European Union could and should do a better job for its citizens.

The report focuses on breast cancer, type 2 Diabetes, healthcare-associated infections (HAIs), heart failure and severe combined immune deficiencies (SCID).

This report outlines the burden of such diseases to the healthcare systems of the European Union and shows the solutions and concrete examples known to be effective in screening programmes for these diseases. It also lays out concrete policy recommendations to improve outcomes for patients and society throughout the EU.

“This Insight Report is potentially game-changing as it shows how much screening and secondary prevention can help to improve our healthcare systems,” said Roberto Bertollini, Honorary President of Health First Europe, and a former Chief Scientist of the WHO Regional Office for Europe. “If this report doesn’t demonstrate the importance of boosting the availability of screening programmes in Europe, I am not sure what will.”

HFE Executive Director Brandon Mitchener said at the report’s launch that the current impact of the analysed diseases on EU healthcare systems highlights the need to boost secondary prevention and screening programmes across the EU. “The use of digital tools in particular has the potential to unlock a pool of valuable knowledge in an unprecedented way to prevent diseases and identify early signals of poor health”, he said.

John Bowis, HFE Co-Patron and a former Member of the European Parliament, said that the report was “a clear warning to policymakers that the role of secondary prevention and screening needs to be taken much more seriously. These are key enablers for saving lives while ensuring the sustainability of our healthcare systems,” he said.

HFE is a non-profit, non-commercial alliance of patients, healthcare workers, academics, healthcare experts and the medical technology industry. Its vision includes having sustainable healthcare systems in Europe, enabling healthcare practitioners to innovate in new models of delivering healthcare services, developing patient-centric solutions and showcasing how “health equals wealth.”

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About HFE

Health First Europe is a non-profit, non-commercial alliance of patients, healthcare workers, academics, healthcare experts and the medical technology industry. We are joining forces to transform health care through innovative solutions. Since we believe that every European citizen should benefit from the best medical treatments available, we aim to ensure that equitable access to modern, innovative and reliable health care solutions is seen as a vital investment in the future of Europe. Our alliance was born in 2004 thanks to commitment of our co-Patrons and our members to build truly patient-centred healthcare systems in Europe.

Contact for media inquiries: info@healthfirsteurope.org

PRESS RELEASE: Launch of HFE Insight Report ”Identifying the gaps between evidence and practice in the prevention of surgical site infections”

PRESS RELEASE: Brussels, Tuesday 17 November 2020 – Health First Europe launches the Insight Report on ”Identifying the gaps between evidence and practice in the prevention of surgical site infections”

Health First Europe today launches a new Insight Report titled ”Identifying the gaps between evidence and practice in the prevention of surgical site infections” showing striking gaps between evidence-based measures suggested by official guidelines and medical practices in European hospitals which represent a serious concern for the safety of European patients.

Surgical Site Infections (SSIs) are infections that occur within 30 days following a surgical procedure and affect either the incision or deep tissue at the site of the operation. SSIs pose a threat to the lives of millions of patients each year, leading to over 16,000 deaths. Increased patient morbidity, mortality, and loss of earnings during recovery are some of the indirect costs associated with SSIs. The overall cost of SSIs in Europe is estimated to be around €19billion.

Moreover, the issues of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and SSI are part of the same vicious circle. As any healthcare-associated infection, SSIs are often caused by antibiotic resistant organisms. SSI treatment has become very complex and challenging due to antibiotic resistance (AMR), the pathogens’ adaptive ability to defend themselves against drugs intended to kill them.
These factors give rise to more emphasis on the prevention of SSIs in patients across Europe. Such prevention should aim at protecting and promoting patient safety while decreasing the rate and burden of infections, especially in relation to AMR bacteria.

The good news is that SSIs are largely avoidable and up to 50% can generally be prevented through the successful implementation of clinical practice guidelines. If the necessary actions are taken, the threat of drug-resistant infections will be minimised, resulting in millions of lives saved.
To prevent and manage infections across the surgical pathway, it is necessary to implement a holistic and multilevel strategy. This should include system change, improving guidelines adherence, training, education, monitoring, surveillance, evaluation, and communications for awareness raising.

The Report draws the attention of European Policymakers to 5 key policy calls that would reduce the incidence of SSIs in Europe:

• Creating a European Framework on HAI prevention and control that would allow reaching a consensus around evidence-based guidelines and clearly defined protocols to prevent SSIs

• Harmonising evidence-based guidelines in line with the WHO official guidelines by facilitating the creation of an Expert Forum to adopt evidence-based guidelines such as those issued by the WHO and support their implementation across Europe. It is also important to foster the involvement of scientific associations’ in inter-sectoral training on HAI prevention and control.

• Expanding ECDC’s role to ensure observation, surveillance and data gathering and communicate current and emerging threats to human health posed by infectious diseases. Surveillance data on infections are a key element of any prevention programme, as is having standardised reporting and data comparability across the European Union

• Facilitating guidelines implementation and adherence through the creation of instructions and standardised safety checklists that increase surgical procedure safety and promote better communication and collaboration among surgical teams

• Developing a European curriculum for infection prevention by supporting Member States in developing harmonised education and training standards relating to infection prevention and control based on the WHO surgical checklist and guidelines as part of their national healthcare professional curricula.

Last but not least, Health First Europe believes that it is necessary to facilitate the exchange and scaling up of best practices at any level and put in place rewarding systems to promote excellence in quality of care and patient safety.

Our Insight Report collates the results of a pan-European survey commented by national experts to raise national and European policy makers’ attention on the need to harmonise guidelines and protocols to prevent Surgical Site Infections. Only reducing the gaps between evidence and medical practices we can save lives.
Roberto Bertollini – Health First Europe President

About Health First Europe

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HFE Secretariat
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PRESS RELEASE: HFE announces its new Honorary President, Mr Roberto Bertollini

Brussels, 07 June 2018 – Health First Europe is delighted to announce the appointment of the new Honorary President, Mr Roberto Bertollini.

Public health, science and policy have always been his primary concerns. Holding degrees in medicine and paediatrics as well as a Master of public health, his entire career has been devoted to enhancing patient safety for citizen wellbeing worldwide as well as improve the link and dialogue between science and policy.

From 2011 to 2016, Mr Bertollini has been WHO Representative to the EU in Brussels and Chief Scientist of the WHO Regional Office for Europe.

Since January 2017, Mr Bertollini has been Advisor to the Minister of Public Health of Qatar, working to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of the public health system in the country. In addition to this, he is a Member of the Scientific Committee on Health, Environment and Emerging Risks (SCHEER) of the Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety, providing scientific opinions to European Commission Services on health-related issues.

Under his leadership, Health First Europe will intensify its efforts and initiatives to:

Prioritise the development of innovative and integrated model of organisation of care within the discussion on healthcare systems sustainability and efficiency;
Keep safety for patient and health workforce under the limelight of the EU institutional debate to implement safety policies in the EU;
Encourage key health stakeholders and policymakers make better plan and invest in early diagnosis and screening programmes as key enablers for saving lives while ensuring sustainability of our healthcare systems.

As he states, ¨I am delighted to continue the good work initiated by my predecessor Mr John Bowis. I will keep continuing to build upon our belief that “health equals wealth” with my commitment to promote a more sustainable, inclusive and innovative healthcare, to enhance a safety culture in health settings and achieve effective public health programmes and practices across Europe¨.

Please read here Roberto Bertollini’s editorial Committed to protect our health.

About Health First Europe

Health First Europe is a non-profit, non-commercial alliance of patients, healthcare workers, academics and healthcare experts and the medical technology industry. Launched in 2004, HFE advocates for equitable access for patients to modern, innovative and reliable medical technology to build better and safer healthcare systems in Europe. With a solid constituency of 24 pan-organisations including patient and healthcare professionals as well as of 32 Members of the European Parliament, HFE calls for truly patient-centred healthcare and believe that every European citizen should benefit from the best medical treatments available.

More information

HFE Secretariat

info@healthfirsteurope.org

T. +32 (0)2 626 1999

NEWS: Today HFE launched the White Paper on Rapid Diagnostic Technologies to tackle AMR

Innovation in diagnostics for fighting antimicrobial resistance: Launch of the White Paper on Rapid diagnostic technologies to tackle AMR

Brussels, 31 May 2017 – Today the European Parliament Interest Group on Innovation in Health and Social Care called on the European Commission to boost funding and innovation to foster the uptake of rapid diagnostic technologies in the upcoming Action Plan. To encourage a new approach to the use of diagnostic technologies to tackle antimicrobial resistance, MEPs Harkin, Busoi, Kandenbach and Swinburne have provided full support to the launch of the White Paper on Rapid diagnostic technologies to tackle AMR developed by Health First Europe in collaboration with the Alliance of Patients’ Organizations (IAPO) and the World Alliance Against Antibiotic Resistance (WAAR).

Abuse of antibiotics is one of the most significant drivers for multidrug-resistant bacteria. Antibiotic consumption widely varies between EU/EEA countries. In the countries with the highest consumption, people consume 3.4 times more antibiotics compared to countries with the lowest consumption. Innovative diagnostic technologies can contribute – as part of a broader and coordinated plan – to reduce antibiotic misuse. Rapid diagnostic technologies are simple tools able to reduce unnecessary prescription, tailor treatment for bacterial infections and limit infection spread.

To create a situation in which antimicrobials are prescribed based on diagnosis, in conjunction with presentation and clinical experience, the White Paper calls upon the European Commission and European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control to:

Promote the use of rapid diagnostic technologies in screening programme guidelines for drug-resistant bacteria.
Set up a European monitoring programme capable of tracking implementation and the use of rapid diagnostic tools and outcomes in European healthcare systems.
Champion in their awareness-raising campaigns the critical role of the use of rapid diagnostic technologies in tackling antimicrobial resistance.
Develop public health messages to enable a change in patient behaviour towards antibiotic misuse.
Encourage the uptake of rapid diagnostics in preventing antimicrobial resistance by creating a rapid diagnostic market stimulus in Europe. Funding targeted research for innovative rapid technologies.
Promote alternative reimbursement systems to facilitate the uptake of innovative technologies in national healthcare systems.
Implement “one horizon scanning” tools to facilitate the development of clinical evidence for rapid diagnostics.
Take the lead in advocating evidence-based best practice models for rapid diagnostic tools.

To read the White Paper on rapid diagnostic technologies to tackle AMR, click here.

NEWS: Leading advocates in health and social care call on Commissioners to do more on community care

Today leading advocates for health and social care policy in Europe called on European Commissioners to develop a dedicated and holistic policy on community care. Eurocarers, European Forum for Primary Care, European Social Network and Health First Europe, together call European Commissioners for health and food safety and employment, social affairs and inclusion, to support Member States in their efforts to make person-centred community care a reality.

Community care has the potential to support smarter spending, generate greater investment in the local communities, and reduce inequalities for citizens who want and need to access care and technologies outside of the hospital. In order to support sustainable healthcare and social welfare systems in Europe, the partners called upon the Commissioners to develop a Commission Communication on Community Care as well as share best practices in community care, establish funding for community care projects in health and social care programmes, and promote a joint action on community care.

Executive Director for Eurocarers, Stecy Yghemonos, explained the importance of such policy, stating “Research shows that there are more than 100 million carers in Europe today and that these people provide 80% of care. Informal carers both complement and supplement the work of formal caregivers and patients often prefer informal care to formal care. It is therefore essential to approach informal carers as core partners in the care pathway and to address their needs and requirements as part of a holistic policy on primary care. This implies the recognition of their important role, the provision of financial and in-kind assistance and the opportunity to have access to information, training and counselling.”

Professor Jan De Maeseneer, Chairman, Europe Forum for Primary Care, stated, “We believe that governments need to move quickly in reforming the way that primary care services are organized and funded – toward interprofessional, team-based care and toward funding for integrated programs, within Community Health Centers, that help improve individual, family and community solidarity, equity and health. However, the need for this reformed approach to first line health and health care is not limited to the wealthier countries of Europe. One might argue that the Community Health Centre model is perhaps the only reliable way that resource-poor countries will ever be able to reverse the overwhelming odds that are faced within and by their fragile health systems.”

John Halloran, Chief Executive, European Social Network, highlighted the key role of community care in people’s lives. “If we want to improve people’s wellbeing and life chances we really have to develop integrated community strategies and services across the health, social and economic spectrum. This means moving from reactive to preventative, from compensation to investment and from entitlement to partnership.”

“A dedicated EU policy on community care is imperative to ensuring genuine shifts away from treatment-driven systems towards preventive care. A Commission Communication at EU level should be developed that would help to enable citizens, carers and innovation to work together towards a common goal of citizen well-being,” said John Bowis, Honorary President, Health First Europe.

NEWS: Community care – centerpiece of health policies

Brussels, 3 June 2015 – Today the Latvian Presidency in collaboration with Health First Europe encourages supporting and investing in the development of policies to improve care for patients specifically in community settings. Launching the “Declaration for Making Patient – Centered Community Care a Reality,” the Latvian Presidency promotes the importance of patient-centered care for all citizens in Europe.

The declaration encourages all stakeholders to focus on supporting Member States to:

Increase preventive care in the community
Facilitate access to innovation for patients in the community setting
Support training of healthcare professionals in the community
Promote integrated care across all points of patient care
Strengthen the governance of integrated care

Launching the declaration, Secretary of State of the Ministry of Health Ms. Solvita Zvidriņa remarked:

“EU has an important role to play in supporting Member States to implement better and smarter healthcare policies that put the patient at the center of care in all settings. Promoting quality and better care in the community and smarter use of healthcare services will help to ensure greater health and wealth for all in Europe.”

To ensure genuine shifts away from treatment-driven systems towards preventive care, policy frameworks on community care at EU level should be implemented that would help to enable citizens, carers and innovation to work together towards a common goal of citizen well-being.

To read the Declaration, click here.

For further details, please contact:

Amanda Massey

Executive Director

info@healthfirsteurope.org

+32 (0)2 626 1999

PRESS RELEASE: Health First Europe launches European Parliamentary Interest Group on Innovation in Health and Social Care

Brussels, 12 November 2014 – Health First Europe today announces the launch of a new Parliamentary Interest Group to facilitate greater focus on improving patient access to innovation in health and social care. Together with Members of the European Parliament Marian Harkin (ALDE, IE), Karin Kadenbach (S&D, Austria) and Dr. Kay Swinburne (ECR, UK), the Interest Group will address key policy objectives around research, health promotion and public health at EU level.

Ensuring that public health is a Parliamentary priority in the next term, the Interest Group will focus its activities on prioritising innovation on the EU health and social care agenda, raising awareness of patient-centric solutions for sustainable, accessible and resilient health systems, and seeking broad support from MEPs for implementing innovative solutions for patients and healthcare professionals.

“The Parliamentary Interest Group is an important vehicle not only to support MEPs in their work on public health, but to help bring forward concrete ideas and solutions for the many challenges we face as citizens when it comes to accessing high quality health and social care.” said Health First Europe’s Honorary President John Bowis, “We will partner with the Co-Chairs, interested MEPs and other stakeholders to develop and implement material solutions that facilitate patient-centric care across the continuum – from prevention, to diagnosis, monitoring, treatment and cure.”

The Interest Group was launched on the occasion of the 10th Anniversary of Health First Europe, bringing together officials from the European Institutions and health stakeholders to celebrate the past work of the association on a variety of key health issues. The first meeting of the Interest Group will take place in 2015.

For more information about the Interest Group, click here.

For further details, please contact:

info@healthfirsteurope.org

+32 (0)2 626 1999

PRESS RELEASE: EU should support patients to become managers of their own health

18 December 2013 – To empower citizens to manage their own health, every European citizen should have access to a personalised health management plan including information on prevention and screening. Given that patients will be required to take additional responsibility for their health, Health First Europe today launches its Statement on Health Literacy, calling for the EU institutions to provide greater support and encouragement for initiatives aimed at helping citizens to be engaged and informed when making decisions about their health.

Following the adoption of Council Conclusions on the Reflection Process on Modern, Responsive and Sustainable Health Systems, the Member States have agreed to put forward policy actions for patient empowerment. As part of future initiatives, HFE believes that policies should focus on spurring action among citizens to seek trusted and reliable health information. The EU can support the development of health plans that encourage proactive behaviours to facilitate improved health and well-bring throughout all stages of life. Future policies must incentivize citizens to keep track of their health and provide accessibility to preventive services (such as screening and diagnostic testing).

Honorary President John Bowis highlighted the importance of personalised health plans, stating:

“The challenges faced by health systems require individuals to be more proactive about their health. In order to encourage greater responsibility, trusted information providers and preventive services will have to be made more accessible. The EU has an important role to play in addressing best practices not only for functional health literacy, but encouraging citizen action. “

Health First Europe believes that the EU is well placed to foster uptake of personal health plans by continuing to promote health literacy, establishing evidence on patient engagement, sharing best practices, championing patient rights and encouraging partnerships to connect citizens with preventive services.

For more information, contact:

Amanda Bogg

Director

info@healthfirsteurope.org

Tel: +32 (0)2 626 1999

@healthfirstEU

PRESS RELEASE: Health First Europe calls for EU leadership on Community Care

9 December 2013 – Aiming to meet the enormous challenges faced by health systems across Europe, Health First Europe today launched its’ Model for Community Care. Meeting with EU Health Commissioner Tonio Borg, Health First Europe members called for the European Commission to prioritise community care on the EU health agenda and bring forward a dedicated policy.

The HFE Community Care Model is a roadmap identifying six areas of needed reform to facilitate care that puts citizens at the centre of the system. The model focuses on establishing guiding principles to increase patient empowerment, preventive care and innovation to benefit citizens, carers, health systems and society. Honorary President John Bowis declared:

“Health systems continue to rely on a model where patients are cared for on the basis of acute episodes. With the rise of chronic diseases, this system will no longer be able to meet the demands of patients at the level of quality required. Community care can support overall citizen health and well-being in order to prevent the onset of disease, but also to ensure that care is managed in partnership with the citizen, throughout his/her life – not just during episodes of care. ”

Health First Europe Vice-President and patient representative, Albert van der Zeijden suggested, “We need greater EU leadership on community care policy to drive Member States to make solutions available to patients outside of acute settings to increase their quality of life.”

Representing healthcare workers, Health First Europe Vice-President Bert van Caelenberg agreed and argued that, “Community care offers many opportunities for healthcare workers. I hope that upcoming European Commission initiatives in 2014 focus on how professionals, patients and innovation can continue to be better connected to provide high quality care throughout the EU.”

To access the HFE Community Care Model, click here.

For more information, please contact:

Amanda Bogg

Director

info@healthfirsteurope.org

+32 (0)2 626 1999

PRESS RELEASE: Ensuring safety of medical devices must not unnecessarily limit patient access to life-saving technologies

21 February 2013 – Health First Europe considers that safety, transparency and access should form the basis of the new legislation on medical devices, but believes that the legislation in its current form would negatively impact the accessibility for patients to life-saving medical technologies. Launching today its statement on the new European legislation, HFE welcomes many of the provisions but voices concern that proposed additional new requirements for the the approval process will inevitably limit the timely access for patients to life-saving technologies. Honorary President of Health First Europe John Bowis, stated:

“HFE has always been greatly concerned about the safety of patients and believes that the proposed legislation appropriately addresses safety issues. However, reducing and limiting access for patients to medical technologies does not make patients safer. In fact, it puts them at greater risk as they wait for technologies that can provide more reliable diagnoses, self-management capabilities and life-saving treatments. The current proposal puts a new and disproportionate burden on patients.”

HFE’s members argue that the legislation must support both safety and access. The two are not mutually exclusive and we encourage policymakers and health stakeholders to seriously address the issue of access within the current proposal. We must do all that we can to ensure that the ability of patients to receive safe, timely treatment is not unnecessarily jeopardised.

For more information, please contact:

Amanda Bogg

Health First Europe Secretariat

info@healthfirsteurope.org

+32(0)2 626 1999

PRESS RELEASE: Stakeholder involvement and transparency keys to EU health technology assessment

22 November 2012 – Health First Europe today launches its pocket card recommendations on Health Technology Assessment (HTA) in order to ensure increased knowledge at EU level about HTA and its use as a tool to provide patient access to new, advanced health technologies. Health First Europe believes that the structure of an effective network for HTA collaboration at EU and Member State levels must include increased stakeholder involvement in HTA decisions and greater transparency of how decisions are taken in order to achieve an effective structure for cooperation.

Member States are using HTA more frequently as part of the healthcare decision making process. HTA is an evaluative process of new health technologies which assesses the value of the technology in relation to patient well-being. In response to more frequent use of HTA, the European Commission has been facilitating greater cooperation and knowledge-sharing between Member States as part of Joint Actions on HTA (EUnetHTA) and will launch a permanent collaborative network in 2013 based on the legal provision within the Patients’ Rights in Cross-border Healthcare Directive.

John Bowis, Health First Europe Honorary President, explained “Making HTA processes more inclusive by increasing the involvement of stakeholders (particularly patient groups) in the HTA process ensures that evaluations of new health technologies always give substantial consideration to the most important beneficiary of the technology – the patient.”

Health First Europe recommends that the new network for HTA collaboration strive to make HTA a more inclusive process including the creation of a stakeholder appeal process for decisions on HTA as well as ensuring declarations of conflicts of interest are made by all stakeholders. Additionally, Health First Europe believes that greater transparency is necessary for the methodologies used to determine value in HTA assessments as well as increased flexibility in the approach to HTA to capture the full impact of medical technologies on patients, careers, the healthcare systems and society in general.

View Health First Europe’s HTA pocket card here.

About Health First Europe:

Health First Europe is a non-profit, non-commercial alliance of patients; healthcare workers; academics, healthcare experts and the medical technology industry.

We aim to ensure that equitable access to modern, innovative and reliable medical technology and healthcare is regarded as a vital investment in the future of Europe. We call for truly patient-centred healthcare and believe that every European citizen should benefit from the best medical treatments available. www.healthfirsteurope.org

For more information, please contact:

Amanda Bogg

Health First Europe Secretariat

info@healthfirsteurope.org

+32 (0)2 626 1999

PRESS RELEASE: Continuity of Care – Press Release European Federation of Nurses (EFN)

The Patients’ Rights in Cross-border Healthcare EU Directive (2011/24/EU) calls on Member States to enhance cooperation between healthcare providers and institutions at all levels to ensure safe, high-quality and efficient cross-border healthcare. Continuity of care must also be organised and encouraged within the national and regional health systems of the European countries to make a broad collaboration in cross-border healthcare possible.

The European Federation of Nurses Associations (EFN) believes that nurses, as the fundamental link between all healthcare sectors, have a crucial role in ensuring the continuity of care and asks for several efforts to be made to ensure that the nursing profession can deliver it:

Continuity of communication and information at all levels to provide holistic and integrated care for European citizens. Community care facilities equipped with interoperable eHealth services to support channels of communication among healthcare professionals. Adoption of a common nursing terminology, such as International Classification for Nursing Practice (ICNP). A competent, well-motivated and sustainable professional workforce to encourage capacity building when taking up innovative solutions. Clear identification of roles and responsibilities defined for health professionals, including advanced roles for nurses. High standards of cooperation, active flows of communication, team working and multidisciplinary approach within integrated delivery systems.

The EFN believes that these efforts together with appropriate funding are essential for a successful implementation of the EU Directive on Patients’ Rights in Cross-border Healthcare.

Please contact Mr Paul de Raeve, Secretary General of the European Federation of Nurses Associations, for more information.

Email: efn@efn.be – Tel: +32 2 512 74 19 – Web: www.efnweb.eu

Further information:

EU Directive on Patients’ Rights in Cross-border Healthcare; EFN Policy Statement on Patients’ Rights in Cross-Border Healthcare Directive;EFN Position Statement on Patients’ Rights in Cross-Border Healthcare Directive.

PRESS RELEASE: John Bowis and Health First Europe unveil 5 key e-Health principles for policymakers

Health First Europe (HFE) Honorary President John Bowis announced HFE’s key tenets for e-Health petitioning policymakers to adopt the policy recommendations in order to foster increased access to medical technologies for patients. Speaking at the Hungarian Presidency Ministerial e-Health conference in Budapest, Hungary, Mr. Bowis revealed the key principles which include e-Independence, e-Workforce, e-Value, e-Accessibility and e-Transparency and incorporate each health constituency perspective – patients, healthcare professionals and industry. The recommendations provide prescriptive, concrete measures for expanding the uptake and use of e-Health technologies for citizens throughout the EU.

Mr. Bowis announced the key e-Health tenets during his panel on Evidence-Informed Policy Decisions on Telemedicine stating, “Health First Europe encourages policymakers to consider our recommendations as a means of ensuring patients are aware of, and able to, benefit from the technologies which exist today. These recommendations are derived from our broad constituency and meant to take account of the barriers which still prevent individuals, professionals and industry from realising the advantages e-Health technologies have to offer.”

The five key e-Health principles announced by Mr. Bowis were based on those prescribed in the Health First Europe publication “E-Quality in E-Health” and include:

e-Independence – Every individual should have their e-Health needs assessed and be provided the opportunity to manage his/her own healthcare. This should be done through a scheme allowing for access to e-Health technologies namely via a direct payment system which allows individuals to choose and manage their treatment.

e-Workforce – Health professionals must be part of the conception and design processes of e-Health solutions through formal consultation procedures so that new tools meet end users’ needs and support health professionals’ work. Prompt communication with clients, patients and other professionals through the use of e-Health solutions will save valuable time which can be re-oriented to direct patient care where professionals are needed most.

e-Value – E-health innovations shall be funded from a value-based perspective which incorporates all aspects of the benefits to the patient throughout the continuum of care. The initial coverage could be revised with time to reflect the accumulated evidence on the technology benefit to healthcare systems.

e-Accessibility – Each and every consumer shall have the right to an interactive online health record which is owned by, and accessible to, the individual and can support rapid, secure communication between health professionals, specialists and citizens for personalized, homecare management.

e-Transparency – Health Technology Assessment (HTA) authorities shall report approved e-Health services and products to a central online repository so that a real-time EU map of e-health services and their accessibility are available to all citizens. HTAs should provide a mechanism for secure, transparent reporting of patient experiences with products and services in order to facilitate the patient perspective in the overall HTA process.

Health First Europe expects the implementation of its five key principles to be realised throughout the Member States by 2020 and will be closely monitoring the progress of the recommendations.

*****

About Health First Europe:

Health First Europe is a non-profit, non-commercial alliance of patients, healthcare workers, academics and healthcare experts and the medical technology industry.

For more information please contact:

Amanda Bogg

Health First Europe Secretariat

info@healthfirsteurope.org

Office: +32 (0)2 626 1999

Mobile: +32 (0)489 334 298

PRESS RELEASE: Health First Europe demands concrete actions for rapid uptake of eHealth

New publication highlights key recommendations

8 February 2011 – Health First Europe released yesterday its publication entitled “E-Quality in E-Health” demanding action amongst policymakers and stakeholders to quickly advance patient access to e-Health technologies by setting concrete targets for Member States on the reimbursement of payments and the access to innovative technologies. Authors of the publication declared that EU institutional involvement must determine quantitative objectives for access in order to encourage the migration of best e-Health practices and increase the ability of patients to utilise the current health technologies.

Launching the publication in the European Parliament under the sponsorship of MEPs Françoise Grossetête (EPP, France) and Milan Cabrnoch (ECR, Czech Republic), the event highlighted how e-Health can empower patients by giving them increased access to innovative technology and the difficulties that still exist at EU and Member State level to make e-Health a reality.

Health First Europe’s call for action challenges policymakers to safeguard the patient as the centre for all e-Health policy by establishing benchmarks for Member States in the areas of patient access to e-health technologies and payment reimbursements.

Mr. John Bowis, Health First Europe Honorary President, discussed the importance of e-Health for increasing the efficiency of healthcare systems but cited, “Challenges are still faced by Member States with regards to increasing access to e-Health. E-health has been promoted as a silver bullet for healthcare systems but the reality is that such innovation is only slowly making its way to patient care”.

Health First Europe Patron Mr. David Byrne, former EU Health and Consumer Protection Commissioner, commented on the increasing importance of e-Health on the European agenda:

“Policymakers must continue to play a role in ensuring that the recommendations put forward in this publication are generated into discernable results for patients. Ensuring access of patients to e-Health should be the ultimate goal of e-Health policy. The Commission needs to establish a transparent benchmark on current e-health applications and the actual use of patients in order to set a tangible target for Member States to achieve better patient accessibility”.

Mr. Bowis then called on the EU institutions to accelerate access to e-Health for patients and encouraged Member States to develop e-Health strategies to ensure ease of implementation for usability and accessibility for both patients and professionals. He also asked, “Do we know where e-health is being administered for chronic conditions? How do we export that model to areas without access? Are budgets being assembled to increase innovation uptake? Are healthcare workers being trained in new systems of innovation? All of these questions remain unanswered”.

“E-Quality in E-Health” featured concrete stakeholder recommendations for ensuring that the uptake of e-Health is rapidly increased in order to benefit the patient. The recommendations put forward include:

EU institutions must investigate inadequate reimbursement and funding systems in Member States through comparative data studies
Policymakers must determine targets for access of e-Health usage
Member States must develop e-Health strategies to monitor e-health uptake and access for patients

Key contributors to the publication: MEP Dr. Milan Cabrnoch (ECR, Czech Republic); Dr. Andrzej Jan Rys (Director Public Health and Risk Assessment Unit, DG SANCO, European Commission); David Lloyd Williams (Representative European Health Telematics Association)

To access the Health First Europe publication click here.

About Health First Europe:

Health First Europe is a non-profit, non-commercial alliance of patients, healthcare workers, academics and healthcare experts and the medical technology industry. We aim to ensure that equitable access to modern, innovative and reliable medical technology and healthcare is regarded as a vital investment in the future of Europe. We call for truly patient-centred healthcare and believe that every European citizen should benefit from the best medical treatments available. www.healthfirsteurope.eu

For more information please contact:
Amanda Bogg
Health First Europe Secretariat
E: info@healthfirsteurope.org
T: +32 (0)2 626 1999

PRESS RELEASE: Chronic disease management demands EU leadership: Innovation the way forward

EU Member States need integrated care models when managing chronic diseases

Brussels, 1 December 2010 – The Belgian Presidency of the European Union and Health First Europe (HFE) have called for European leadership in the management of chronic diseases at a conference jointly organized in the European Parliament on 1 December entitled “Chronic Disease Management: Aim for an Innovative Cure.” The conference aimed at engaging Members of the European Parliament in the ongoing discussion about the challenge facing the EU and its Member States’ in terms of their role(s) in managing care in chronic diseases.

Chronic conditions and diseases are the leading cause of mortality and morbidity in Europe. Including diseases such as diabetes, cardio vascular diseases, dementia, asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases, the WHO estimates that in the EU region, the costs of chronic diseases and their risk factors range up to 6.77% of a country’s GDP. In this respect, the Belgian Presidency of the European Union has made chronic diseases a priority during its presidency. At the next Health Ministerial Council meeting on 6 December, they will present their conclusions on chronic diseases’ management and prevention.

“These long term conditions affect patients’ quality of life and at the same time impose a serious burden on healthcare systems. Some of these diseases may not be curable but by providing new innovative treatments, healthcare authorities can help patients forget that they are patients”, said today John Bowis, HFE’s Honorary President at the conference.

The two MEPs co-hosting the conference MEP Kathleen van Brempt (BE, S&D) and MEP Miroslav Mikolasik (SK, EPP) reinforced their support in engaging with different health stakeholders to uncover solutions.

MEP Mikolasik stated that “a lot has been done on the prevention side” and he specially mentioned the tobacco and obesity as major risk factors for chronic diseases. MEP van Brempt added that “with the current economic crisis, looking at disease management programmes introduced by some European countries to improve chronic care and contain costs should be a priority for all EU Governments”.

“Nurses and in general healthcare workers are exposed to new paradigms in the way healthcare is delivered. This means that our workers need new settings and new qualifications. These qualifications may change over time this will certainly help in the management of chronic diseases. We need to work hand in hand with decision makers to assess the investments and training needed to improve our workforce in Europe”, stressed Paul de Raeve, Secretary General of the European Federation of Nurses.

Belgian Health Minister Laurette Onkelinx explained that “Europe has many health challenges and the EU should really work to help patients make healthy choices easily. This will only be possible if we involve patients and stimulate an integrated approach to healthcare”.

Minister Onkelinx added that “The European Union has been applying the “disease by disease” approach. Now it is time to have a holistic approach to chronic diseases bringing together different stakeholders in the discussion on the challenges our systems and our society are facing. EU Member States need integrated care models when managing chronic diseases”.

John Wilkinson, Chief Executive of Eucomed, outlined the commitment of the medical technology industry in Europe to continue to develop new cost-effective products that improve the quality of life of patients but also reduces the burden on healthcare systems all over Europe… “Innovation is critical for our industry to unleash its potential. We are pleased to see that the Europe 2020 Strategy acknowledges the importance of innovation as a way forward. Engaging with policy-makers and our stakeholders is also essential to create the most cost-effective and patient-centered solutions for our society”.

Peteris Zilgalvis from the European Commission referred to some EU initiatives that look at bringing innovation into healthcare. In particular Mr. Zilgalvis explained the “Innovative Union”, one of the flaghships of the EU 2020 strategy that wants to address some of societal challenges of the EU by putting innovation at the heart of the strategy. He explained that “the European Commission will be working among other things in addressing chronic diseases such as Alzheimer, an age related disease that will affect more and more of the EU”.

Prof. Panos E. Vardas, President, European Heart Rhythm Association, recalled that “there are many different chronic diseases and conditions and they have in common is that they all need a long-term response, coordinated by different health professionals and of course access to new innovative treatments and extending into home care. Nowadays, most treatments are offered around acute episodes in the hospital setting”.

Notes for the editor:

Health First Europe is a non-profit, non-commercial alliance of patients, healthcare workers, academics and healthcare experts and the medical technology industry.
We aim to ensure that equitable access to modern, innovative and reliable medical technology and healthcare is regarded as a vital investment in the future of Europe. We call for truly patient-centred healthcare and believe that every European citizen should benefit from the best medical treatments available. www.healthfirsteurope.org

For more information contact:
Patricia Lamas Sánchez
HFE’s Secretariat
E: info@healthfirsteurope.org
T: 0032 (0) 489334298