#EHMA2023 – Shaping the health management agenda

23 January 2023

EHMA 2023 is our 28th Annual Conference. It will take place on 5 -7 June in Rome, Italy, and is organised in partnership with our member, ALTEMS, Graduate School of Health Economics and Management, Faculty of Economics, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore in Rome.

Every year, the EHMA Conference brings together key healthcare stakeholders – health managers and leaders, healthcare professionals, hospital managers, researchers, academics and policymakers, offering them a unique setting to exchange knowledge and share best practices on ways to lead, manage and organise healthcare services in times of constant transformation, where the concept of ‘permacrisis’ has made a compelling entrance into our daily lives.

This year’s theme is ‘Health management: sustainable solutions for complex systems’. The last few years acted as an unprecedented catalyst to health systems’ transformation, adding a layer of complexity to health management. New topics emerged and old ones gained renovated importance in health management: the increasing use of technologies and AI; the need for workforce upskilling and reskilling; the One Health approach and the environmental impact of healthcare. Gathering experts from Europe and beyond, EHMA 2023 will be a platform to discuss today’s challenges; identify innovative, long-lasting approaches to overcome them; and lay the foundations for tomorrow’s resilience. The recognition of sustainable solutions is crucial to realise EHMA’s vision of excellent health management for a healthy Europe.

The Conference program is organised around five tracks that reflect the holistic practice of health management. Selected through the consultation with the EHMA Board, the Scientific Advisory Committee, and the wider membership, the tracks are:

  1. Governance, Leadership and Social Responsibility – This track examines how health systems and organisations set, implement, and oversee clear strategic goals and their impact towards society.
  2. Management, Operations and Practice – This track pays attention to the operations of organisations and systems, such as to ensure the proper use of resources.
  3. Human CapitalProfessionalism and People Management – This track focuses on how human resources are managed to support the delivery of health services. This includes challenges relating to optimal planning, personnel shortages, the post-COVID ‘great resignation’, remunerations and incentives, and competence building.
  4. Finance and Economics – This track examines business planning and refers to how resources are raised, pooled, allocated or spent to ensure that people have access to health services of good quality without financial hardship.
  5. Policy and Regulations – This track focuses on the development, planning, implementation, and evaluation of policies and regulations affecting health management at the organisational, local, regional, national, and European levels.

Additionally, to help steer the focus of the tracks, five topics were selected:

  1. ‘People-centred systems’ explores how to ensure that people – not only as patients – are the priority when discussing value, developing new technologies, and analysing integrated care needs.
  2. ‘Health technology and digital transformation’ looks at the effective adoption of digital innovation without losing sight of the social and human element of medicine.
  3. ‘Workforce of the future’ focuses on ensuring better planning, better working conditions, and better skills development in the health sector.
  4. ‘Sustainable and resilient health systems’ discusses strategies, processes, and solutions that health managers and systems can implement to ensure sustainability and resilience, which encompass economic, environmental, and social aspects.
  5. ‘Healthcare access, delivery, and outcomes’ looks at how health disparities can be addressed to deliver better quality of care and better health outcomesespecially in the context of the pandemic, the energy crisis and the war in Ukraine.

Your research, experience, and best practices are crucial to support the spread of knowledge on effective health management. Therefore, we invite you to join EHMA 2023 to meet peers, discuss complex problems, and identify implementable solutions together. Submit your abstract by Monday, 6 February 2023 at 11.00 CET.

SUBMIT YOUR ABSTRACT

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What our Members say

I have been active in EHMA since the first years of the '90s and I have seen its evolution from a small association of members interested in sharing knowledge on health management practices to the current status of reference and advisory key player for EU, health systems and organisations, stakeholders associations, industry and universities. EHMA is now a unique knowledge hub, policy advisor, community of practice and network of best in class organisations involved in health policy and management. A place where health managers can build their competences, policy-makers and stakeholder associations envision how to implement and sustain change through health management, industry leaders understand how to engage more effectively with health organisations and systems. The right place to nurture and grow health management capabilities and capacity for every stakeholder of health systems.

Prof. Federico Lega, University of Milan, Italy

Health management has a crucial function in shaping public health and health system challenges. The Medical University of Varna, Bulgaria had success in collaborating with EHMA on EU-funded projects that has resourced us to create new health management competencies for the future workforce. In addition to all classical definitions, health management is a science dealing with individuals, groups, and society at large. It is an art contributing to the beauty of our lives and an interactive communication process at all levels of institutions and human energy. I have also had the pleasure to chair the South Eastern European Special Interest Group which gives members a space to discuss and tools to address how health systems are managed in our regions.

Prof. Todorka Kostadinova, Medical University of Varna, Bulgaria

I enjoy the high level of interaction and engagement in EHMA’s activities, in particular during the annual conference where the panel discussions are rich and well prepared. As a hospital manager and professor of health management, EHMA motivates and inspires me to be creative. You go back home feeling energised from seeing old friends and making new connections, as well as being convinced of serving as EHMA’s ambassador. It’s a strong feeling of interdisciplinary engagement, but it also feels like being part of family-like community.

Prof. Sandra C. Buttigieg, University of Malta, Malta

EHMA is a pre-eminent organisation for everyone working in planning, managing and delivering health services across Europe. As a long standing member of EHMA I have always been impressed by the vibrant community of managers, researchers and academics it has created and by the many opportunities for sharing knowledge and funding opportunities it has brought to its members. Its international scope is impressive and its impact is often felt in management and research across European and national health systems.

Prof. Axel Kaehne, Edge Hill University, UK

Health workforce has become more essential in operating, managing and maintaining health systems lately, particularly in crisis and emergency situations. European healthcare professions and the workforce need to be high on the agenda of managers and decision makers. The Health Services Management Training Centre, Semmelweis University in Hungary is a longstanding EHMA member, because it connects us with collaborators and experts, with whom we can have complex debates, from whom we can learn and at the end find solutions in various challenging fields of healthcare management.

Dr Eszter Kovács, Health Services Management Training Centre, Semmelweis University, Hungary

As a hospital administrator and health management professor, I see on a daily basis that the healthcare challenges require talented and skilled managers to transform it. the EHMA membership has been beneficial to bring healthcare management research and education to the demanding healthcare services world, promoting healthcare management competencies and knowledge creation.

Dr Alexandre Lourenco, APAH - Association of Portuguese Hospital Managers, Portugal

Many healthcare systems in Europe and beyond are facing similar challenges which require innovative and creative solutions. EHMA’s annual conference, webinars, Programme Directors’ group and other activities and resources provide incredible opportunities for networking, connecting and sharing experiences. A distinct feature of EHMA is the diversity of members with representation from many countries, sectors and different communities of practice – academic, policy-makers, practitioners, managers, leaders and students. The annual conference is a highlight in the calendar year, offering a friendly, fun and learningful environment for emerging and established members to engage, collaborate and meet up with old and new friends. I am proud to be a member of the EHMA Board.

Prof. Ann Mahon, University of Manchester, UK

Society evolution, pandemics and ageing modify health needs. So, health policies and services are to change dramatically. EHMA, through webinars, workshops and annual conference provides an excellent insight to a professional changing world, favouring closeness to management innovation and the protagonists of these changes. As a primary care services’ manager, participating in EHMA activities is really worth it and allows to involve oneself in the innovation processes.

Dr Antoni Peris Grao, Consorci Castelldefels Agents de Salut (CASAP), Spain