The Spanish Presidency has four strategic goals: to introduce a global vision for an e-Health policy totally integrated in the post 2010 European Agenda; to drive a new eHealth Action Plan, facing the new European challenges; to develop and promote ministerial agreements, in particular regarding integration of e-Health in community policy and implementing reinforced governance.
2010 means a breaking point in EC institutional and policy development. Since December 1st we have a new Treaty, a new President and presidential structure. A new Commission will be in office on the following months. The Lisbon Agenda is coming to an end a whole series of strategic documents are being reviewed in the framework of a post 2010 Agenda. Work is also being made in face of the next financial and programming periods, in particular regarding Innovation, Research and Cohesion Policies. The Council Conclusions of the Swedish Presidency of 1st December mean a further step in the integration of e-Health in community Health policy. As a consequence, e-Heath should also be taken into account in other relevant Community policies. The Spanish Presidency has the vision of an eHealth policy fully integrated in the post 2010 European Agenda and contributing to its main goals of economic recovery, growth and employment and economic, social and territorial cohesion. This global vision could stimulate further development of post 2010 e-Health Policy objectives, such as:
- eHealth for a healthier Europe: ensuring quality and continuity of care in the European Health Space.
- eHealth for sustainable growth and employment: a healthy citizen for an efficient economy.
- eHealth for innovation and social change: technological and social creativity and innovation to improve living, working and ageing conditions.
- eHealth for local and regional development and cohesion: e-Health as a determinant of economic, social and territorial cohesion.
New eHealth Action Plan
After the accumulated experience it is time for a new Action Plan, facing challenges as: crises; ageing population; sustainability and efficiency in the public sector; and economic and social inclusion. eHealth has received a great impulse in the European Union through the Actions Plans e-Europe 2002 and 2005, i-2010 and the 2004 Action Plan for a European e-Health Area. The most relevant financial instruments, such as the Structural Funds, the Competitiveness and Innovation Programme and the 7th Framework Programme, are making important contributions to eHealth projects and infrastructures in the 2007-2013 period. A series of yearly Ministerial Conferences, started in 2003 in Brussels, have also highly contributed to this impulse. In 2006 Spain had the great honour of hosting the Conference in Malaga and 2010 will be a new opportunity of hosting it again in Barcelona, in March, under Spanish Presidency.
For further information, please visit:
http://ehealthspain.eu
For the first time, the Ministerial High Level Conference on eHealth and the World Health IT Conference and Exhibition are being held in the same week in a joint initiative called "eHealth Week 2010", the most prestigious event in the European eHealth sector. Barcelona International Conventions Centre (CCIB) will open its doors from March 15 to 18 to receive the European meeting most attended by the healthcare sector interest groups.
For further information and registration, please visit:
http://www.worldofhealthit.org
http://www.ehealthweek2010.org