Overview: “eHealth without frontiers” soon to become reality

Almost 25 degrees Centigrade, a sunset dinner by the Adriatic Sea: for several hundred members of the European eHealth community, work must rarely have been so pleasant. The Slovenian resort of Portoroz hosted the 6th European eHealth conference.

Published: 05/09

PORTOROZ, SLOVENIA - (HealthTech Wire) - The welcome dinner on the evening of May 5 had a decidedly Caribbean flair. And the ambience on the seaside terrace of the Grand Café was pretty close to what the average tourist might expect to see in a high-gloss travel brochure. But good weather and a stunning sea view were not the main reasons for the arrival of several hundred health-IT experts in Portoroz on the Slovenian coast.

At the conference centre of the Grand Hotel San Bernadin, the European eHealth community gathered to learn more about the eHealth activities of the European Union, to share views on telemedicine, data protection and interoperability, and to network with colleagues from 27 EU Member States. “From eHealth strategies to eHealth services”, a theme introduced by the European commissioner for information society and media, Viviane Reding, probably best describes what the 6th European high-level conference on eHealth was all about.

“The conference is a great opportunity for Slovenia and for Europe to discuss ways to provide comprehensive treatment for patients and at the same time boost the efficiency of healthcare systems,” said Slovenian minister of health Zofija Kukovic. Slovenia currently holds the Presidency of the European Council. “In future, a healthy lifestyle alone will not be enough to face the challenges of an ageing population. We will have to go several steps further. Telemedicine, for instance, will be of the utmost importance for future healthcare systems.”

The European eHealth conference concluded with a conference declaration that is available on HealthTech Wire. The declaration stresses the need to deploy innovative telemedicine and ICT tools for patients with chronic diseases. It also calls for more research and development efforts and for a transparent legal framework that should be agreed upon between the Member States for defining the responsibilities, rights and obligations of all those involved in the eHealth process. (PP)

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