We aim to contribute to sustainable health care for all
At ESHPM, we envision a more accessible and affordable health care that maintains quality of care while being inclusive to all people. We broaden the conceptualisation of health care from a singular system to a constellation of care and social networks that influence and are influenced by health and health institutions, thus recognising that health inequalities drive and are driven by other social inequalities. Improving patient-centred care, creating more equitable access to treatments, and prioritising preventative care while ensuring the sustainability of health care in workforce structuring, costs and the ecological footprint are necessary to engage with today’s societal challenges. We acknowledge that health and well-being are not contained within borders, and a global approach that seeks to ensure universal access to health care for all is needed.
Distinguishing the ‘what’ and ‘who’ of the societal impact ambition as sustainable health care for all plays an important role in weighing which research, education or engagement activities may be positive for one group, but at a cost for society as a whole. In seeking to have a positive societal impact, ESHPM places this question of what impacts will benefit the most of society at the centre of all activities.