HealthManagement, Volume 9, Issue 3 /2007

Meeting of the Board of the EAHM in Krakow(Poland)

The first meeting of the year of the EAHM Board took place at the beginning of June in Krakow, in Poland.

 

The delegates were happy, not only to be able admire this magnificent town in fine weather, but also to participate in the festivities of its 750th anniversary. On 5 June 1257, Krakow’s Act of Location was declared. The foundation of the town took place in 1257, after it was destroyed by a Mongol invasion in 1241. The festivities consisted of many free open-air and indoor shows.

 

The Polish member of the Board, Professor Mieczyslaw Pasowicz, also celebrated an anniversary: his hospital, the John Paul II Hospital celebrated 90 years of existence and the 10-year anniversary of the visit of Pope John Paul II.

 

On this occasion, Asger Hansen, a Board member and former President of the EAHM, as well as Willy Heuschen, the Secretary General, who were closely associated with the founding and integration of the Polish Association of Hospital Managers, were honoured.

 

Numerous members of the Board took part in these colourful events after the end of the meeting.

 

During the Board meeting, the President Paul Castel, as he announced after his election in August 2006, presented his work programme and the activities accomplished. He also outlined the future of the EAHM.

 

The organisation of a seminar in 2007 (see announcement on page 5), the establishment of an official position at the beginning of the year in relation to the plan of action of the Commission on healthcare, and an eventual project of collaboration with hospital IT managers in Europe which is currently being studied was also communicated to the Board members.

 

Furthermore, Paul Castel announced, following the official position and in connection with other responses to the consultation and to the activities of the European Parliament, that he will prepare another communication, in which the EAHM underlined once more the reasons for the necessity for European standards for quality in healthcare, and will plead for a European model of accreditation for healthcare establishments.

 

Following this new communication and the November seminar, Paul Castel made contact with the French health ministry, as France will take over the presidency of the Council of Europe in July 2008. The aim of the EAHM is to promote the theme of quality management and methods for evaluating quality, and to make it part of the programme of the French presidency.

 

Mr. Castel then Announced the “Hospital IT Managers Work Group”. At the beginning of the year, the Board took part in a

meeting with the Groupement pour la Modernisationdu Système d'InformationHospitalier (‘Group for the Modernisation of Hospital Information Systems’), GMSIH.

 

The GMSIH is a French publicinterest group, which is a legal entity and is linked to the hospital association. The aim is to encourage hospitals to cooperate in the IT domain. Its sixteen collaborators support the hospitals of the GMSIH and their IT projects by managing projects, making written recommendations on IT management, performance, etc. The management of change of IT administrators, aimed at improving their activities, is another one of their priorities.

 

Since the hospital IT suppliers have already established structures on a European level, and since European standardisation is in progress, this French group is of the opinion that a real need exists to unite users in order to define the specific interests of hospital IT managers throughout Europe. They therefore proposed to the EAHM to establish a working group, which, though regular trimestrial meetings, will define the common interests, exchange experience and give input to hospital managers. The members of the Board are requested at this moment to share their views on this project by means of a brief questionnaire.

 

Confirmation of Willy Heuschen as Secretary General of the EAHM

The Board had to decide in Krakow on naming a Secretary General for 2008. Willy Heuschen (Belgium) was confirmed in his post, and his candidacy accepted unanimously. Willy Heuschen has occupied this post since 1997. His background:

 

since 1979, Willy Heuschen is the manager of Eupen Hospital, in the Germanspeaking region of Belgium. He participates in several Belgian consultative committees, e.g. the National Committee of Hospitals (“Comité national des hôpitaux”), and the Joint Committee of Doctors and Hospitals (“Commission paritaire des médecins et hôpitaux”).

 

Theme of the EAHM Congress 2008

The theme of the next EAHM Congress 2008 will be: “New Leadership for New Challenges”. The Board and the Austrian delegation agreed on this central theme.

 

The subtitle is: “Hospital Management Meets Leadership”. For more information, consult the adjoining invitation to the Congress. The scientific programme summary will be communicated shortly on the website of the Congress: www.aedhcongrès2008. eu

 

Presence of the EAHM at International Conferences

The EAHM was once again highly visible on the international scene in 2006 and 2007. The Secretary General, Willy Heuschen, represented the EAHM at the 9th European Health Forum in Bad Gastein, Austria, and delivered a presentation on the theme of quality management and accreditation of healthcare establishments in Europe.

 

Willy Heuschen and Asger Hansen were both invited to the International Symposium for Prevention of Cardiovascular Diseases entitled “Imaging, Management & Clinical Research”, during which they both spoke of a European accreditation model, and the safety and mobility of the patient. The Vice-President, Heinz Kölking, represented the EAHM in March 2007 at the World Health Congress and spoke on the theme of the spirit of enterprise in hospitals.

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