SEE Health Network Secretariat

Sunday, January 27, 2013

WHO Europe important events in 2013

Dear Members of the SEE Health Network,

Below is the link to the WHO Europe most important events in 2013. The SEE Health Network Presidency, Executive Committee and Secretariat considers that the SEEHN can both benefit and contribute to them. It might be also helpful for your actions in the 10 SEEHN Member States.

http://www.euro.who.int/en/who-we-are/governance/regional-committee-for-europe/news/news/2013/01/key-whoeurope-events-in-2013

The 8th Global Conference on Health Promotion 2013
The 8th Global Conference on Health Promotion (8GCHP) will be held at the Finlandia Hall in Helsinki, Finland, on June 10-14 2013. The conference is co-organized by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health of Finland.
Participation at the Conference is by invitation only. More information on this topic will be provided at a later stage. Further information: healthpromotion@who.int

Monday, January 7, 2013

SEEHN Israeli Presidency Report

The SEEHN Presidency held by the State of Israel (July-December 2012) has finalized the activity report. You can read or download a copy of the report by clicking here.

Starting from 1 January 2013 the SEEHN Presidency is held by the Republic of Moldova.

Wednesday, December 19, 2012

SEEHN meets in Tel Aviv, Israel, 10-11 December 2012

"The SEE Health Network held its semi-annual plenary meeting on 10 and 11 December in Tel Aviv, Israel. Ambassadors of the SEEHN Member States Serbia, Croatia and The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia took part at this meeting and this will be further employed as regular SEEHN practice focused at strengthening health diplomacy and the political component of the regional cooperation in public health in the SEE in line with the SEEHN Banja Luka Pledge (2011).

SEEHN scaled up partnerships for public health signing Memorandum of Understanding with Project HOPE, focusing on further implementation of the Banja Luka Pledge II pillar on equity and accountability in health through practicing health in all policies approach. The Plenary reviewed significant action performed, based on the Israeli Presidency report presented.

Dr Joanna Nurse presented an overview of H2020 and the European Action Plan on strengthening public health services and as a group, discussed concrete how to co-ordinate planning over the coming years to align the work of the SEEHN to Health 2020 and to adapt the EAP for strengthening public health to the setting and priorities of the SEEHN.

A workshop on further implementation of the Banja Luka Pledge II pillar on equity and accountability in health through practicing health in all policies approach was held. Dr. Chris Brown outlined different approaches to improving policies and partnership working across other sectors in order to improve health and address inequalities in health. Next steps were identified regarding how to take this work forward in the SEEHN.

The Plenary elected a new Executive Committee after 6 years of the extended mandate of Mrs. Snezhana Chichevalieva as a Chair, and the retirement of Dr. Maria Ruseva from WHO/EURO. Dr. Goran Cherkez will perform as a Chair of the Executive Committee in 2013.

SEEHN continues to develop and strengthen its independent sub-regional structures: The Deputy Minister Jovica Andovski from the Host Country of the SEEHN Secretariat reported at the Plenary that the Secretariat has been registered as an international entity and preparations for the inauguration event have been already started. The Secretariat will be inaugurated by the Prime Minister of the Host Country, Mr. Nikola Gruevski, in the presence of the Regional Director of the WHO/EURO, the Ambassadors, heads of the international organisations that are SEEHN partners, Minister of Health of Slovenia, as the representative of the SEEHN partner countries and other high level political and technical persons from the SEEHN member states and SEE regional cooperation structures, on 3-4 February 2013, in Skopje, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia". “We are happy to host the Seat of the Secretariat and to provide for the implementation of the SEEHN Agreement on the Arrangements for the Seat of the Secretariat that was ratified by the Macedonian Parliament and signed by other 9 member States”- Deputy Minister Jovica Andovski said.

Monday, December 3, 2012

SEEHN eHiAP meeting in Slovenia

South-eastern Europe Health Network (SEEHN) organized a meeting on equity in Health in All Policies (eHiAP) in Moravske Toplice, Slovenia, on 7-8 November 2012.
Hosted by the Ministry of Health of Slovenia and facilitated by the WHO European Office for Investment for Health and Development (WHO Venice Office), the meeting was designed for technical focal points and experts from each Member State that implements equity in Health in All Policies (eHiAP). This meeting activity falls under the umbrella of the SEEHN Regional Health Development Center (RHDC) on Strengthening Public Health Services based in Skopje, The Former Yugoslav republic of Macedonia. In addition, directors of the SEEHN RHDCs on human resources in health, blood safety, accreditation and quality of care and non-communicable diseases participated, thus making the meeting an exercise of the HiAP in itself.( Annex 1: List of Participants).

Health in All Policies (HiAP) addresses complex challenges of health and well-being by promoting an integrated policy response across sector and portfolio boundaries, incorporating concern for health and health equity impacts into the policy development process of all sectors and agencies. The Banja Luka Pledge signed in 2011 reinforced the Region’s commitment for advancing the HiAP approach. In this view, the meeting had the overall aim to support SEEHN countries to advance implementation of the second pillar of the Banja Luka Pledge on HiAP: Achieving equity and accountability in health.

Click here to read or download the report.

SEEHN plenary meeting in Israel

"SEE Health Network will gather for its semiannual plenary meeting on 10 and 11 December in Tel Aviv, Israel. Ambassadors of the 10 SEEHN Member States are invited to take part at this meeting and this will be further employed as regular SEEHN practice focused at strengthening political component of the regional cooperation in public health in the SEE.

SEEHN scales up partnerships for public health signing Memorandum of Understanding with Project HOPE, focusing on further implementation of the Banja Luka Pledge II pillar on equity and accountability in health through practicing health in all policies approach. The Plenary will take forward SEEHN action on H2020 and the European Action Plan on strengthening public health services.

SEEHN continues to develop and strengthen its independent sub-regional structures: The SEEHN Secretariat has been registered as an international entity and preparations for the inauguration event will be reviewed at this Plenary Meeting.The Secretariat will be inaugurated in the presence of the Regional Director of the WHO/EURO,the Ambassadors and other high level political and technical persons from the SEEHN member states and SEE regional cooperation structures, on 5-6 February 2013, in Skopje, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia"

Tuesday, October 9, 2012

Southeastern Europe Health Network’ Regional Health Development Centre for Accreditation and Continuous Health Care Quality Improvement Officially Inaugurated

Southeastern Europe Health Network’s Regional Health Development Centre (RHDC) for Accreditation and Continuous Quality Improvement was officially opened within the framework of the Agency for Accreditation of Health Care Institutions in Serbia, on October 4, 2012 in Belgrade.

Prof. Dr Slavica Djukic, PhD, Minister of Health of the Republic of Serbia in her keynote address, highlighted that the work of South-eastern Europe Health Network’s Regional Health Development Centre for Accreditation and Continuous Quality Improvement will ensure a base for further improving healthcare services and public health in the SEE.
Establishment of Regional Health Development Centres guarantees sustainability and long-term implementation of cooperation programmes in health, exchange of experiences and good practices, harmonization of standards and establishing guidelines, the Minister stressed.

The meeting was also addressed by Dr. Goran Čerkez, Acting Chair of the SEEHN Executive Committee, Dr. Nand Shani, from the Regional Cooperation Council, Ms. Antje Rothemund, Head of the Council of Europe Office in Belgrade , Mr. Loup Brefort, Country Manager of the World Bank in Serbia and Dr. Dorit Nitzan Kaluski, Head of WHO Country Office in Serbia. The conference was also attended by H.E. Mr. Vincent Degert, Head of Delegation of the European Union to Serbia. Following this, the presentation of the state of art of the SEEHN was delivered by Ms. Snezhana Chichevalieva, WHO representative to the SEEHN. The new RHDC was presented by Dr. Snezana Manic, director of Agency for Accreditation of Health Care Institutions of Serbia.

Following the official inauguration of the Centre, workshop of the SEEHN national focal points to the RHDC from the 10 SEEHN member states was held. The workshop focussed on sharing information on patient safety, presenting the basic principles of quality of care and risk management in health care, including the role of efficient communication and monitoring. Thus, this RHDC has already created network of experts to share experiences and exchange information relevant to the SEEHN member states.

The event was organized by the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Serbia and the Agency for Accreditation of Health Care Institutions in Serbia, with the support from the World Health Organization, Regional office for Europe.

Monday, October 1, 2012

First Transplantation in Montenegro under Croatian RHDC Leadership - Historical Event for Advancing Transplantation in the Balkan Region through the Framework of the South Eastern Europe Health Network

Croatian Minister of Health Rajko Ostojic and a team of 10 Croatian Transplant doctors and delegates arrived in Podgorica, Montenegro on September 24, 2012 to assist Montenegrin doctors in conducting the first ever organ transplantation in the country. The procedure which took place on September 25^th was the first living related kidney transplantation in Montenegro, with a 43 year old mother donating a kidney to her 25 year old son. The transplantation was successful, and both mother and son are recovering well. The second living related kidney transplantation took place the next day, immediately following the first as Croatian doctors were on site to assist their Montenegrin colleagues for a mother to donate a kidney to her young daughter. The operations were performed at the University Hospital Montenegro under the supervision of Professor Marina Ratkovic, nephrologist, who has been spearheading transplantation efforts in the country and leading the newly established Montenegrin kidney transplant team.

Minister Ostojic and the Croatian team of doctors and delegates were graciously welcomed by Montenegrin Minister of Health Miodrag Radunovic and country experts. A press conference was held detailing the historical occasion and a reaffirmation by both countries to continue collaborative work in advancing the newly established Montenegrin transplant program and focusing on deceased donation as a future priority.

These landmark events are the direct result of the Regional Health Development Center (RHDC) Croatia led by RHDC Croatia Director Dr. Mirela Busic under the framework of the South Eastern Europe Health Network (SEEHN) in partnership with the World Health Organization. The Transplantation Society (TTS), The European Society for Organ Transplantation (ESOT) and its chapter the European Transplant Coordinators Organisation (ETCO-EDC), the International Society for Organ Donation and Procurement (ISODP), and the European Commission have served as expert advisors to the RHDC Croatia and region to lend expertise and support for the SEEHN Initiative on Deceased Donation. Since the inception of the RHDC Croatia in February 2011, several educational workshops and meetings have been organized to provide professional expertise and technical assistance to SEEHN countries. The ongoing exchange of experience between Montenegro, Croatia, and international experts as facilitated by the RHDC Croatia enabled this historical event only a year and half after collaborative efforts began. Prior to this, patients had been sent to Moscow and Pakistan for transplantations.

In May of 2012, Prof. Francis Delmonico of the Transplantation Society, Dr. Busic, and RHDC Croatia Project Manager Lydia Raley conducted an onsite visit to Montenegro to meet with Ministry representatives and transplant professionals, offering support and expert guidance for launching a national transplant program in Montenegro. Shortly thereafter in June of 2012, the First Ministerial Conference on Organ Donation and Transplantation was held in Zagreb. Minister of Health Ostojic invited Ministers of Health from ten SEEHN countries to partake in addressing the current status transplantation in South Eastern Europe, encouraging collaboration and emphasizing Croatia’s continued support for advancing sustainable regional transplant and donation activities.