Wednesday, June 14, 2023
Healthy Society, the partnership between LDE and Medical Delta, is further growing with the recent inclusion of faculties from Leiden University, Delft University of Technology, and Erasmus University as knowledge partners. The province of South Holland has also joined in. This provides a strong foundation for implementing the ambitious plans outlined in the new strategy and investment agenda. So, what do these plans involve?
It would be strange to sit for too long at a meeting discussing how South Holland can become a healthier province. That's why around twenty deans, administrators, and representatives from various knowledge institutions and the province listened to the presentation of the new Healthy Society strategy and joint plans while standing.
Among them was Meindert Stolk, deputy of the province of South Holland. He acknowledges the importance of the province's involvement in the program and collaborative investment in a healthy society, considering the significant health disparities in South Holland. He highlights a poignant example of how the average life expectancy decreases by one year at each stop on the Rotterdam-Zuid to Noord metro line. "As a province, we can make a difference by making informed choices regarding housing and air quality." He also advocates for the development of a joint investment agenda for the coming years. This political support is more than welcome, emphasizes Annetje Ottow, President of Leiden University and Chair of LDE: "All the knowledge in the region is needed."
Medical Delta professors Andrea Evers and Sandra van Dijk, coordinators of the Healthy Society program, welcome the new partners and present the plans for a joint agenda and strategy developed through collaboration with dozens of parties, including universities, academic hospitals, colleges, and societal partners. The plan highlights four health challenges and provides initial solutions or approaches to address them.
Foto's: Suédy Mauricio
Transdisciplinary approach
The first goal is to approach health issues from multiple disciplines and perspectives. Van Dijk states, "We now know that numerous factors are interconnected when it comes to health problems, yet as researchers and policymakers, we tend to tackle them separately."
Wim van den Doel, Dean of LDE, describes in a speech how he was once approached by a skeptical colleague while traveling. "He was convinced that today's universities are incapable of solving tomorrow's major issues because everyone is too entrenched in their disciplinary silos. But now I think: you don't need to change the entire structure of the university; collaboration between existing faculties can also work. This program proves that." His colleague David de Glint, Managing Director of Medical Delta, who also contributed to the strategy, notes, "What strikes me in this room is the enthusiasm among all parties involved; we must cherish this collaboration."
Machiel van Dorst, professor of urbanism and environmental psychology at Delft University of Technology, observes how interdisciplinary collaboration can disrupt the status quo. "Many scientists often begin with the problem statement and then search for a solution, but in architecture, you often start with the solution, what you want to achieve. That's where creativity can come into play right from the start."
Prevention
The second focus for LDE and Medical Delta is prevention, as healthcare still predominantly focuses on cures. Government expenditure makes this painfully clear. Van Dijk explains, "Less than 1% of healthcare funds are allocated to prevention." Technology can play a role in this regard. For instance, Caroline Figuera, a medical researcher at Delft University of Technology, explores how health apps can be utilized for preventing mental health issues or promoting lifestyle changes. Despite the effectiveness of such apps, especially in combination with therapy, they are still underutilized by vulnerable groups. Figuera states, "Mainly highly educated individuals find their way to these types of apps because they are already more familiar with the technology. Language is also a barrier; such apps should be user-friendly for those who have difficulty reading or do not speak Dutch."
Focus on Vulnerable Groups
This aligns with the third strategic point: an additional focus on vulnerable groups, as they are at greater risk of health problems. Anna Nieboer, a sociologist at Erasmus University and one of the Scientific Leaders of the Healthy Society program within Medical Delta: lifestyle & prevention, investigates how health policies can be effectively implemented. Nieboer notes, "We often see that those who are already relatively well-off benefit the most from treatments. The most outspoken patients are the ones who sign up for new interventions, even though they may not gain the most significant improvement."
Moreover, if health disparities already exist among different groups of people, they often self-perpetuate and accumulate. Van Dorst, the architect, states, "Here in Leiden, people from various socioeconomic groups and neighborhoods differ greatly in terms of health and quality of life. It's understandable: if you see people around you driving nicer cars or students sitting on terraces late into the evening, while you don't have those opportunities, it also breeds dissatisfaction." And that is detrimental to a healthy society.
Tailored Approach
The fourth strategic goal is to reduce health disparities through tailored approaches. This means that healthcare providers take into account patients' life situations and look beyond physical symptoms. Van Dorst highlights a good example, a general practitioner in Rotterdam-Zuid, who didn't immediately refer people with stomach pain to the hospital but instead engaged them in conversations with a debt counselor. "Often, their stomach pain disappeared once their financial situation improved."
After the strategy presentation, Sandra van Dijk and Andrea Evers distribute the glossy booklets to the attendees. They also present, together with Meindert Stolk, an initial draft of a joint investment agenda that will be further developed in consultation with all partners. Medical Delta Director De Glint says, "Now it's time to put into action what looks so promising on paper."
Read the new strategy of Healthy Society here.
Author: Anne Holleman, also see the article on the website of Leiden University
Foto's: Suedy Mauricio
