HIMSS Europe 2020: Key Takeaways and Virtual Road Notes

7-11 September 2020, we immersed ourselves in the cooperative environment of knowledge sharing, expert insights, and innovation in healthcare digitalization at the HIMSS & Health 2.0 European Digital Event.

Domain leaders, entrepreneurs, and investors from about 100 countries gathered on the virtual platform that welcomed 4K of attendees, over 150 speakers including the WHO, the US ONC, and of course the key Partners from Finland (who are supporting this Conference) along with nearly 140 virtual booths at the exhibition floor. 

The event talks, panel discussions, keynotes, and the latest tech solutions showcasing sessions clearly pivoted where European healthcare is going and needs to go. 

It was a pure delight to see the formed Ecosystems that include government, public authorities, healthcare professionals, and tech experts. 

The discussions, while having technology at their core, provided an integral vision for each issue highlighting the importance of continuous education, the leadership role of healthcare workers, the necessity of institutional support, and organizational networks.

HIMSS Europe 2020 discussions

The major topics are listed below, and we’ll make sure to shed some light and reflect on the most interesting aspects during the following weeks: 

• AI: Beyond the Buzz
• Building the Digital Maturity and Resilience of European Healthcare Systems
• Building the European Healthcare Data Space
• Critical Care in Critical Settings: Lessons Learned From COVID-19
• Innovation Forum and VentureConnect
• Securing Data, Protecting Privacy, Building Trust for Innovation and Action
• Silver Health and Economy: New Demographics, New Opportunities

As expected, the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic shaped the agenda and a lot of attention was paid to the lessons learned so far and steps to be taken to make the healthcare sector more resilient and prepared for tomorrow’s challenges. Remote care, self-service, optimization of supply chain and in-hospital activities, eliminating unnecessary healthcare, mitigating risks of medical errors, an individual-tailored approach — all these initiatives empowered by modern technology will continue to play a big role in that. They’ve already reached a good maturity level and will be developed further in the directions of standardization, governance, interoperability, and predictive analytics.

The attendees were among the brightest international minds. We simply must mention HIMSS Chief Clinical Officer – Charles Alessi who led a number of panel discussions and his vibe and passion energized everyone.

We are looking forward to continuing the dialog at the face-to-face event in Helsinki in June 2021. 

HIMSS 2020 virtual experience 

A few words for the platform which HIMSS prepared for this event in a very limited time window. The organizational committee did their best to ensure the experience was seamless, they prepared all necessary guidance in advance, provided support before and on the event, and were just excellent hosts. 

While the experience on the digital conference is definitely different from the real-life event, there are some definite plusses: 

• No worries if you missed a session, as it is available on-demand online the next day; 
• You can instantly communicate with speakers on the platform, and connect aside as the majority offered their Lin contacts in the session profiles; 
• Networking is simplified with the lounge area and the list of active attendees available for more target conversation via private chat; 
• Digital Materials that companies have in their booths can be easily stored or shared via the platform functions. 

The platform will be enhanced going forward, and the major suggestions from attendees were relevant to instant video chat capability and keeping the chats history.

Conclusion

For GreenM, it was the first experience of exhibiting at a virtual event of such a scale. Due to pandemic time, we are forced to live with the new reality of virtual conferences working, networking, and cooperating “from home.” COVID-19 has become a great challenge for society and the healthcare industry. It exposed systemic problems in our approaches to digitization, population health, and digital literacy. At the same time, the coronavirus has given us the chance to streamline the digital revolution here and now, and together – breaking the barriers between countries and societies.

References:

Key topics of the the HIMSS & Health 2.0 European Digital Event 2020

https://www.himss.org/event-himss-europe-digital

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