The event will be themed ‘Data for Health: the key to personalised sustainable care’
Rebecca Gibson |
More than 1,300 health policy makers and other key players from Europe’s healthcare and IT industry are to discuss personalised sustainable care at eHealth Week in Malta this May.
Held from 10-12 May in Malta, eHealth Week 2017 will be themed ‘Data for Health: the key to personalised sustainable care’ and will be hosted by the Maltese Ministry for Health, the European Commission, HIMSS Europe and the World Health Organization Regional Office for Europe. As is customary, the event will be hosted during the first semester of the Presidency of the Council of the European Union.
During eHealth Week, speakers and delegates will explore the changing ways in which personal health data is created, stored, shared and used. They will also look at how advances in bioinformatics are supporting a paradigm shift towards tailor-made illness prevention and treatment strategies, both for individuals and population groups.
Sessions will also cover the growing opportunities for IT to support patient-centred health services and involving patients in their own care. These include access to personal health data, sharing of data, and m-health applications.
“Data lies at the heart of health service delivery,” said Chris Fearne, Minister for Health in Malta. “During eHealth Week, we will explore the changing ways in which personal health data is created, stored, shared and used. We will discuss how to make best use of information and communication technologies for the benefit of individual citizens and patients, as well as society in general.”
eHealth Week will also address data management analytics for personalised medicine, public health policies, reforming healthcare systems and more. Delegates will also be able to learn about Malta’s eHealth systems, including the myHealth portal and integrated nation-wide eHealth deployments. Malta’s Digital Health Strategy for the years 2017 to 2021 will also be presented.
“This year we are particularly excited to be introducing new and innovative topics for the first time in our eHealth Week educational programme, which have been predicated to heavily influence health and care in the near future,” said Christina Roosen, vice president of public affairs at HIMSS Europe. “These include the blockchain phenomenon, social media in healthcare and virtual reality, to name a few. We will be inviting guests to participate in these discussions in order to maximise the sharing of knowledge at eHealth Week.”
HIMSS Europe has also organised an exhibition hall to enable international IT vendors to showcase their new healthcare solutions for European hospitals.