Making patient-centred healthcare a reality for patients worldwide

We are delighted to announce the successful completion of IAPO’s 3rd Global Patients Congress. The Congress highlighted the progress being made worldwide to address the role of the patient as an essential partner in the design and delivery of healthcare.

Held in Budapest, Hungary from 20-22 February 2008, the Congress brought together over 180 delegates from around the world, representing patients and other stakeholders in health such as the European Commission, the World Health Organization (WHO) and global health professionals' associations, with the aim of learning from each other's experiences in developing patient-centred healthcare.

An evaluation was conducted after the Congress, to read the report click here.

Budapest Parliament

  'Patients should be seen as a catalyst for change and a compass, giving direction to our efforts to reduce unsafe care' said Sir Liam Donaldson, Chief Medical Officer for England and Chair of the WHO World Alliance for Patient Safety.

Key note addresses demonstrated the central role that patients are increasingly playing in healthcare today. Sir Liam Donaldson, Chief Medical Officer, England and Chair of the WHO World Alliance for Patients Safety, Ms Katalin Rapi, Secretary of State for Health Policy at the Ministry of Health, Hungary and Mr. Andrzej Ryś, Director, Public Health & Risk Assessment at the European Commission, DG SANCO, all highlighted the importance of developing collaboration between patients and all other healthcare stakeholders.  To view a full Congress programme, click here. To view a press release click here. Key note presentations are available at the bottom of this webpage. Presentations from workshop sessions are available here.

Sir Liam Donaldson, (Chief Medical Officer, UK and Chair of WHO World Alliance for Patient Safety) & IAPO Board Members. Left to right: Stephen McMahon, (Irish Patients Association), Rod Mitchell, (European Federation of Crohn's & Ulcerative Colitis Associations), Regina Namata Kamoga, (CHAIN Uganda) Myrl Weinburg, IAPO Chair (National Health Council, USA), Sir Liam Donaldson, Durhane Wong-Reiger, (Consumer Advocare Network, Canada), Hussain Jafri, (Alzheimer's Pakistan) & Virginia Ladd, (American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association, USA)

The Congress' key theme of patient-centred healthcare was complemented by a focus on Access to Healthcare, Patient Safety, Patient Information and Patient Involvement.  Through workshops and plenary sessions, speakers demonstrated the progress that has been made in these areas since the previous Congress in 2006. More and more patients are working with healthcare providers to make patient-centred healthcare a reality, and patient groups increasingly achieve recognition for the contribution they make to the design and delivery of healthcare.

Dr Linda Milan shared the progress of the People at the Centre of Health Care project of the World Health Organization (WHO), Western Pacific Regional Office (WPRO). This project draws on the IAPO Declaration on Patient-Centred Healthcare to support its work to “better respond to the needs of all healthcare stakeholders and constituencies in a holistic manner”. 

Dr Linda Milan, WHO Western Pacific Region

In his keynote address Sir Liam Donaldson highlighted the growing recognition given to patients as experts or teachers, helping to ensure that consumers receive the care they need in an appropriate and safe way.  Sir Liam said that in the event of medical error we must always see the opportunity to forgive the error, “but we should not forgive an unwillingness to learn from it”.

Patient-centred healthcare and the valuable role of patients’ organizations was also the focus of the closing keynote address, given by Ms Katalin Rapi, Secretary of State for Health Policy at the Ministry of Health in Hungary. Ms Rapi stressed that the Hungarian Ministry of Health shared the mission of IAPO in recognizing that “patient-centred healthcare can only be realised by all players working together.”

IAPO calls on all stakeholders in healthcare to include patients in a meaningful and sustainable way in all levels of their work and at all points of decision-making, and to build on existing models of involvement in collaboration with patients around the world.

 
Matthias Weinold, (European Aids Treatment Group), Rachel Heath, (WHO Patients for Patient Safety), Jolanta Ewa Bilinska, (Foundation for Patients Safety), & Hussain Jafri, (Alzheimer's Pakistan) at Welcome Reception