How to keep people at the centre of health and sustainable development policies (2019)

Report of the 25th annual meeting of the Regions for Health Network

The 25th annual meeting of the WHO Regions for Health Network took place in the Euregio Meuse-Rhine, straddling Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands, over 26–28 June 2019. The main theme was how to keep people at the centre of health and sustainable development policies. There were three main topics. The first was reducing health inequity, centred on a report on the WHO European Health Equity Status Report initiative. The second was progress on implementing the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. The third theme was issues relating to the health workforce of the future. Each topic included not only a formal presentation, but also comment from an expert panel, discussion by regional representatives and a report back on the views of citizen summits held in the local area. There were also a number of reports on other initiatives and activities within the host region. Further issues discussed included gender health, environmental factors that caused health inequities and the relationship between the health system and the economy. The event also incorporated the business meeting of the Network, including a report on partnership working between regional universities and regional administrations and a presentation on primary care reform in Flanders.