Procure4Health members collaboratively designed the project Action Plan that will be endorsed by internal and external procurers.
Procure4Health, funded by the European Union through the European Health and Digital Executive Agency (HADEA), and led by the Andalusian Public Health System (Spain), is on a mission. From fostering knowledge exchange and capacity building to facilitating networking and partnerships, the community is driving innovation procurement in the healthcare sector. Adopting a demand-driven approach, community procurers have identified shared needs requiring innovative solutions. These needs have been transformed into challenges, with feedback sought from the industry through multiple Open Market Consultations. Additionally, insights gained from project activities are being shared with policymakers at both European and national levels to enhance innovation procurement policies.
From December 3rd to 4th, 2024, Procure4Health members gathered in Brussels, Belgium, for their on-site General Assembly meeting. This dynamic gathering kept the community focused on its objectives and strengthened the collaborations among project partners.
On the first day, Olivier Vargin, Purchasing Coordinator at Clinique Saint-Jean, opened the meeting with an insightful presentation about the hospital. Clinique Saint-Jean has almost 800 years of experience and pioneered as the first palliative hospital in Belgium. Following Olivier’s presentation, the project Policy Workshop was held. To dynamise the session, it was done using Mentimeter. This led to gathering many valuable insights due to the different interactions. Some interesting insights gathered were related to the objectives of the Pre-Commercial Procurement (PCP) instrument and how to improve it.
The first day ended with the project’s Action Plan workshop. During this session, P4H members discussed how to endorse further the Action Plan, which was created collaboratively by the project members. The idea is that the Action Plan gets further endorsed by internal and external procurers of the project. Therefore, it was presented as practical examples, the endorsement of the Action Plan in Norway and the local endorsement in Andalusia. Lastly, it was highlighted the support to be provided to procurers for this task.
The purpose of this Action Plan is to provide operational decision-makers in health and care with practical propositions and actionable steps to facilitate innovation procurement within their organisations, ultimately aiming to better address existing challenges and deliver improved services and outcomes. The primary target group for the identified key actions are the operational leaders within and beyond the Procure4Health community, who work in health and care service provider organisations such as hospitals, primary healthcare centres, community centres, social care residences, or procurement entities. The aim is to equip them with practical guidance on “how to” implement innovation procurement.
The Action Plan is live on the P4H Community Platform—don’t miss your chance to provide valuable feedback and shape the future of Innovation Procurement in the healthcare sector. Become a member now and download it here: https://community.procure4health.eu/p/action-plan
On the second day at Mundo Matongé, the project status and the significant activities accomplished in the P4H community so far were reviewed, which are helping us build a large community of healthcare innovation procurers. Here are our current numbers:
- 757 Members
- 105 Procuring Organisations
- 115 Supporting Organisations
- 98 Suppliers
During the overview of the activities, the three twinning calls were reviewed, and the testimonial of the National Services Scotland (NSS) twinning participant was presented. The NSS found their participation in the twinning’s as a unique learning opportunity.
With only six months left in the project, Procure4Health members are more determined than ever to drive innovation in healthcare procurement and ensure that the legacy of their collaborative efforts continues to benefit the community.
