Presentation of the Masterplan for Healthcare in Regensburg
Regensburg, 29.11.2017: By which measures Regensburg and the Region could use opportunities in the future and realize potentials which exist in the field of healthcare – this was the main topic in the presentations of the “Masterplan-Healthcare” with over one hundred guests from politics, healthcare, business and science who had gathered on Wednesday in the events rooms at The Parkside in Regensburg. The masterplan was worked upon under the leadership of BioPark Regensburg GmbH, an enterprise of the City of Regensburg. The activities are supported by the Bavarian Ministry for Finance and Media, Energy and Technology.
A location analysis as well as interviews and workshops with many stakeholders involved in the environment of healthcare formed the basis for the content of the masterplan presented (also see press releases No. 162, 171, 172, 174, 179, 181 und 183). The masterplan denotes opportunities, potentials and recommendations for action for Regensburg and the Region in particular in the field of “digitalization and e-health” by linking the local strengths in healthcare provision and information technology. Further important specialties are the fields “aging society and demographic change”, “trained professionals and education” as well as “location marketing”.
“With the location analysis on healthcare in the Region of Regensburg presented in December 2015 we laid the foundation”, explained Dr. Thomas Diefenthal, Managing Director of BioPark Regensburg GmbH, who as host opened the event. The study recommended the development of a masterplan. A series of workshops followed this with numerous stakeholders in the region to set the content cornerstones for the masterplan in the various thematic fields. In her following address, the Regensburg Mayor Gertrud Maltz-Schwarzfischer emphasized the significance of healthcare for the future at the Regensburg location. “My thanks go out to the many active participants, so to say our regional experts. It is their valuable contributions which make it possible for us to have an overview of the potentials of the region and the initial recommendations for action how to realize these potentials”, emphasized the mayor. Further thanks went to the Bavarian Ministry of Finance for the funding of the activities.
In his following keynote lecture Dr. Tobias Gantner, Managing Director of Healthcare Futurists GmbH, highlighted the huge future potential and the current thematic trends in the field of healthcare.
Then Dr. Oliver Müller, author of the location analysis and Partner in the area of Pharma & Health at management and technology consulting company Detecon, presented the procedure and process of the development of the masterplan, which he had supported with his consultancy team.
“Ideas need space”, Dieter Daminger, Consultant for Economics, Science and Finance at the city of Regensburg seized this theme as he then presented the results in the field of “location marketing” from the masterplan process. “Our Technology- and Startup Centers BioPark and TechBase are examples of success for the promotion of the economy in Regensburg. Here we want to follow up with expansion into the growing field of healthcare.” A great advantage in Regensburg is its campus character with technology centers, universities and hospitals in immediate proximity. “In a comparable manner to how we present the science location with our "Science Campus Regensburg", we want to present information on activities and stakeholders at the healthcare location Regensburg with "Healthcare Regensburg" as a joint umbrella brand", Daminger stated further. An important contribution to this network is that the medical faculty of the university and the university clinic have established several professorial chairs externally in various other hospitals and those holding the professorial chairs work there. This is an exemplary model for care, research and teaching.
For networking and exchange of the regional stakeholders in healthcare, there are also the activities of the Gesundheitsregionplus, City and District of Regensburg, which are included in the masterplan. Since January 2017 Regensburg has been one of the health regions funded by the Bavarian Ministry for Health and Care. Melanie Nölkel, the head of the business office, gave an overview of the activities before a break for lunch.
In the afternoon three further thematic fields of the masterplan were elucidated. Following the introductions to the respective topics, Dr. Ilja Hagen, Project Manager Healthcare at BioPark Regensburg GmbH and coordinator of the masterplan process, presented the respective goals as well as solution approaches and recommendations for action as results from the masterplan process.
In his introduction to the thematic block “Digitalization and E-Health” Prof. Dr. Georgios Raptis, director of the E-Health laboratory at the OTH-Regensburg, once again highlighted the huge potential that exists in this field, which links two megatrends – digitalization and health. On the topic of “aging society and demographic change” Anton Sedlmeier, official representative for demographics at the City of Regensburg, introduced and emphasized once more the unavoidable effect of the aging population on the health care system – also in a city like Regensburg made “young” by the many students. The introduction to the topic “professionals and education” was given by Dr. Robert Seitz from the Caritas Association for the Diocese of Regensburg and underlined the lack of professionals in the field of caregiving.
In his concluding remarks, Dr. Thomas Diefenthal gave a view of how things should progress. “Some of this can be executed by us within the framework of our funding by the Bavarian Ministry of Finance” he said. “This includes expansion and external representation of the location under a new umbrella brand Healthcare Regensburg. However we also need further discussion with the stakeholders and their engagement with active and also financial and staff participation in the various projects.”
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