On April 14th, 2022, Aspen Institute Romania organized the workshop entitled Priorities of the Romanian Healthcare System: Lessons Learned from the SARS-COV-2 Pandemic, under the aegis of the Aspen Healthcare & Quality of Life Program.

The SARS-COV-2 pandemic highlighted some important weaknesses of the Romanian healthcare system, increasingly leading to a consensus among public and private sector decision-makers and health policy experts on the need to reform key aspects of the system in order to increase its resilience. The discussions focused on necessary reforms that the Romanian healthcare system needs to prioritize in the short and long-term, based on some important lessons learned during the pandemic, as well as best practices already implemented because of the pandemic.

In particular, the workshop focused on shifting the paradigm towards a prevention-based healthcare system, focusing on an enhanced role for immunization. Some key topics for debate included:

  • Lifelong vaccination as a key disease-prevention strategy increasing the resilience of the health system.
  • Increasing coverage of prevention campaigns such as influenza, pneumococcal, HPV vaccination.
  • Extending access to vaccination to isolated communities.
  • Education campaigns on prevention and immunization.
  • Vaccination in pharmacies.

Photo Gallery

Raport Workshop

 

Agenda

09:00 – 09:30         Welcome Coffee & Registration

09:30 – 09:40         Introductory Remarks

  • Dr. Cristian Vlădescu – Senior Fellow, Aspen Healthcare & Quality of Life Program

09:40 – 10:30         Keynote Remarks and Interventions of Public Officials

  • Univ. Dr. Alexandru Rafila – Minister of Health, Romanian Government
  • Univ. Dr. Diana-Loreta Păun – Presidential Adviser, Department of Public Health, Presidential Administration
  • Dr. Cristian Buşoi – Chair, ITRE Committee / Chair, Challenge Cancer Intergroup, European Parliament
  • László Attila – Secretary, Committee for Health, Senate of Romania
  • Univ. Dr. Florin Buicu – Vicepresident, Committee for Health and Family, Chamber of Deputies of Romania

10:30 – 11:15         Interventions of Aspen Healthcare & Quality of Life Program Partners

11:15 – 12:15          Roundtable Discussions 

12:15 – 12:30         Conclusions

12:30 – 13:00        Networking Lunch