Ireland & The European Health Union Series: Opportunities to Improve Irish Healthcare

This event, supported by Janssen Sciences Ireland, features a keynote address by the acting Deputy Director-General for Health at the European Commission, Mr John F. Ryan. This is followed by a panel discussion that looks at the future of the European Health Union before a moderated Q&A session. This expert panel explores what the new Health Union could mean for Ireland, how the health service in Ireland performs compared to European peers, and what lessons could be learned from the best performing European countries. The panel is comprised of: Professor Mary Horgan - President of the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland and world-renowned expert in infectious disease Mr Tony O’Brien – Former Director-General of the Health Service Executive Dr Sheelah Connolly - Senior Research Officer at the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) Professor Paul Browne – Professor/Consultant Haematologist at St. James's Hospital. The experience of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the EU’s COVID-19 Vaccine Strategy in particular, has shown the capacity for the EU institutions to facilitate effective coordination among European countries to protect the health of the European citizenry. Building on these experiences, the European Commission is in the process of establishing an ambitious European Health Union, in which all EU countries can prepare and respond together more effectively to health crises when they emerge. The European Health Union will seek to ensure that medical supplies remain available, affordable, and innovative to all EU citizens, and that European countries can work together to improve prevention, treatment, and aftercare for diseases such as cancer. This presents an important new departure in EU policy which may have major implications for domestic healthcare across the EU. About the Speakers: John F. Ryan, Acting Deputy Director-General for Health, DG SANTE at the European Commission. Professor Mary Horgan, President of the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland. Mr Tony O’Brien, Former Director-General at the Health Service Executive. Dr Sheelah Connolly, Senior Research Officer at the Economic and Social Research Institute. Professor Paul Browne, Professor/Consultant Hematologist at St. James’s Hospital.