European Health Parliament: closing plenary session
Last 24 April, the closing plenary session of the third edition of the European Health Parliament (EHP) took place, an initiative bringing together young experts in healthcare, and in which EPF has been involved as a partner.
Inspired by the motto “Make Health Great Again”, 55 young professionals have been working together for six months in five topic-specific committees addressing the new challenges that healthcare systems currently face.
A perfect example of health collaboration
The day started with an early morning discussion at the European Parliament to warm up. Our Secretary General Nicola Bedlington, together with other high-level representatives such as DG SANTE Director-General Xavier Prats Monné, took part in this dynamic debate about the role of innovation in the future of health care. She seized the moment to remind health stakeholders that “patient empowerment will be crucial in shaping healthcare systems in the future, and healthcare professionals will have to accept that patients will be new colleagues on the scene.”
During the day, the five committees presented their final policy recommendations, together with representatives both from the health industry and from European institutions who endorsed their work. EPF also showed its support to their work and recommendations, and stressed the EHP as a perfect example of health collaboration.
In this regard, Andreas Christodoulou, president of the EPF Youth Group, called for policy makers to take these recommendations into account and implement them at national level. He ended his intervention highlighting the importance of involving patients in this initiative because “patients must be front liners in reshaping the health system across Europe. We, young people, are the future, and young patients are here to stay,” he said.
Next steps
Just a month after the closing plenary, the EHP partners are meeting again to start organising the upcoming edition, starting in the fall. Until then, we will be working on the recruitment campaign, timelines and new partnerships to develop the initiative. The next edition will have a focus on the European Elections 2019.
Meanwhile, the alumni group will keep their efforts high to continue promoting their recommendations among decision makers and stakeholders.
More information
To know more about the European Parliament Health initiative, please visit its website.
Contact persons at EPF: Valentina Strammiello, EPF Programme Manager and Sara Gayarre, EPF Communications Officer.