„It’s the wrong question to ask if we shall transform or not. We will transform, whether we like it or not, simply because of the limits to economic growth and the resource constraints that will be there. We are already overstretching boundaries – and we need to anticipate.“ – Remco van de Pas

For the fourth edition of our Planetary Health Dialogues in early May 2023, we looked at how future health systems in the EU should look like to meet the needs of people and the planet in ‚post-growth‘ economies. For this we invited EuroHealthNet’s Director Caroline Costongs to discuss with Dr Remco van de Pas, Senior Researcher at CPHP, and our Director Maike Voss the barriers to transformation and what EU countries can and should learn from each other?

Health care systems will be under increasing pressure in the future: demand for health care services will rise due to demographic developments and the consequences of environmental crises; at the same time, the health care system is guided in particular by economic interests and less by a socio-ecological transformation.

Our key takeaways from this Planetary Health Dialogue: It is evident that systems will change – whether we like it or not. Now we need to actively shape the required transformation a planned, democratic, equitable and sustainable way. We need a paradigm shift in health care by building narratives across sectors.

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