“The real danger is the comeback of the status quo, not the comeback of another pandemic, this is the time to reshape the system”.
With these words, Mr. Gorgoni, Chair of EUREGHA, concluded his closing remarks for the virtual panel discussion “Lessons from a crisis: how a value-based approach can make health systems more resilient”, facilitated on 17 June by the European Alliance for Value in Health.
COVID-19 has been with us for a year and half now, what have we learned so far? The pandemic has shocked our health systems to their core and demonstrated the need for evidence-based, innovative solutions to create more resilient, patient-centric systems for the future. “Driving transformative resilience relies on alliances, coalitions, and ecosystems, value lives in different places and has multiple meanings, depending on those involved”, Mr. Gorgoni said. He pointed out that COVID-19 has shown the key role of communication in driving social habits, and that health systems could benefit from capitalizing on effective communication skills and big data in order to work towards focused health interventions with limited resources. According to Mr. Gorgoni, to start a new value-based approach to health systems, European networks such as the European Alliance for Value in Health are “fundamental for scouting, evaluating, and fostering best practices.”
Referring to the example of vaccine development, he stressed the need for maintaining this “novel dynamism” in health innovation, while also emphasizing the need for trust. For example, digital health and medicine systems can provide valuable healthcare close to the patient but only if they are simple enough for anyone to comprehend and adopt. There is a risk of wanting to be technological at all costs, or even to enhance health inequalities through inappropriate or unnecessary investments. We must also realize that digital transformations require specific knowledge and skills from both patients and health professionals. Again, informed communication, education, and training are the keys to ensuring the system does not return to the status quo but aligns its forces towards a value-based, patient-centric approach that is better equipped to deal with future challenges.
Mr. Gorgoni personally wrote a blog sharing his views on Value-Based Health Care and the lessons that could be learned from the Covid-19 pandemic. It is published on the website of the European Alliance for Value in Health, of which EUREGHA is a member.
