Guest editorial

G U ES T ED ITO R IA L Eurohealth — Vol.24 | No.3 | 2018 2018isabigyearforhealth.Itmarksnotonlythe anniversariesofmanyinternationalmilestonesincluding Alma-AtaandtheTallinnCharter,but70yearsofthe WorldHealthOrganizationandtheUniversalDeclaration ofHumanRights,andwithittheveryrighttohealthitself. Whileprogressmadeoverthelastdecadeshasbeen promising,wearenowherenearthefinishline,and renewedinternationalcommitmentstoimprovinghealthare setagainstthebackdropofaturbulentpoliticalclimatein Europethatposesathreattomaintaininghealthasapriority item.Decisivepoliticalactionandstrongcommitmentstoa comprehensivevisionofimprovedhealthforallareneeded. With its main theme of “Health and Sustainable Development – Bold political choices for Agenda 2030”, the European Health Forum Gastein (EHFG) 2018 will focus on health in Europe within the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations (UN) Agenda 2030. All session organisers were asked to consider their topics and initiatives in relation to targets of the UN Agenda 2030 including and beyond SDG3 (Ensure healthy lives and promote wellbeing for all at all ages). We would like to explore how the EHFG sessions can contribute to European policy implementation while safeguarding health and furthering sustainable development to ensure reaching the SDG targets. The connection and interaction between health and sustainable development will not only be at the forefront of discussions in Gastein this year, but also features as a central topic of this EHFG special issue of Eurohealth. You will find articles on the four tracks of the EHFG 2018: The track “Innovation for All” will feature a comprehensive look at innovation delivery, uptake and implementation – and the obstacles we need to overcome along the way. One article in this section by Martin Seychell and Anna Eva Ampelas on “The Future of the European Cooperation on Health Technology Assessment” points to strengthened cooperation improving evidence-based decision-making while ensuring the sustainability of health systems. The article “Blockchain in Digital Health and Life Sciences” by Daniel Burgwinkel and Richard Bergström attempts to lift the fog around the hype of the big unknown. The “Sustainable Systems” track will take a demanding but nevertheless optimistic look at how to make all of our systems future-proof. In her article on “Inclusive growth as a route to tackling health inequalities”, Emma Spencelayh sees great opportunities for health policymakers to tap into economic development agendas for furthering health. Kathy Oliver, Stefan Gijssels, Shannon Boldon and Suzanne Wait, on behalf of All.Can, call for a change towards genuinely patient-led health policies in order to avoid inefficiencies in their article on “Patient empowerment driving sustainable cancer care”. Christian Franz and Ilona Kickbusch’s article “The capital-NCD-nexus: The commercial determinants of health and global capital flows” is a wake-up call for the health community to understand the global financial markets and take responsibility for health from the global food and beverage industry in order to urgently prevent and control NCDs. “Evidence for Action” will also take a critical look at how much evidence we have – but how smartly we are employing it for improved policymaking. Jonathan Cylus, Govin Permanand and Peter C. Smith call for a better understanding of the linkages between health systems and economic and fiscal outcomes in their article on “How can health systems advance economic and fiscal objectives?” Isabella Röhrling, 2 Guest Editorial Eurohealth — Vol.24 | No.3 | 2018 3 Sabine Weißenhofer and Brigitte Piso explore the role of evidence in policymaking and point to the need to pick the right tools to aid evidence-informed decision- making on bold political choices in their article “How do you use evidence in policy the smart way?” Martin McKee, et al. name access barriers and disinformation connected with an increased mistrust in governments as possible reasons for recent outbreaks of vaccine- preventable diseases in “Increasing vaccine uptake: confronting misinformation and disinformation”. Persisting inequities in health will be the focus of the “No one left behind” track. “Vaccination is the solidarity of the many for the few” proclaims Xavier Prats-Monné in his article, showcasing an ambitious proposal for a Council Recommendation aiming to improve vaccination coverage across the EU. Catherine Hernandez-Festersen, Caroline Costongs, Nigel Sherriff, et al. call for mandatory training for health professionals to reduce health inequalities experienced by Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex (LGBTI) people in their article “LGBTI people and health inequalities”. Concrete action on health as a pivotal policy item and a key concern on the European agenda, necessary for the economic and social wellbeing of its nations and people, is paramount to this year’s EHFG. We encourage our plenary speakers to “think big” for health in Europe, to discuss bold political decision-making and to dare to imagine a healthy paradigm shift to make our systems future-proof. Following last year’s theme of “Health in all Politics”, the debates will once again centre on championing the urgency of action on health across sectors and borders, and how to better articulate the value that health creates by discussing the synergies and co-benefits of health and economic interests, thereby furthering sustainable development. This need for more confidence to rethink health policy in order to secure social cohesion is stressed in our lead article “A dose of courage for health policy”. Health as an indispensable pillar of sustainable development is a major driver of social and economic development. At the EHFG 2018, sessions will therefore focus heavily on demonstrating the immense economic and social payoff generated by investment in health. The Thursday plenary, co-organised with WHO Euro and the European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies, will involve decision-makers from the finance sector to hear their stance on health and what is needed to convince them of its value. In connection with this, we will discuss the commercial determinants of health, examine the role of markets in health and how we can work collaboratively with the private sector to ensure that commercial interests do not go against health interests, and how we can redress the balance. How can we help the health community to better understand the global financial and investment landscape? Enjoy reading about this and much more in the 6th Gastein edition of Eurohealth! Clemens Martin Auer, President, European Health Forum Gastein Dorli Kahr-Gottlieb, Secretary General, European Health Forum Gastein Cite this as: Eurohealth 2018; 24(3).