A while ago I heard Dr. Valentin Fuster say in one of his conferences that the big social changes in the history of humanity had always been achieved by working collectively as a community, that never had a single person achieved important or groundbreaking social change on their own.
I firmly believe this to be true, and there is a very recent example. We were able to overcome the COVID-19 pandemic thanks to a joint fight, with the public and private sectors working together to develop vaccines in record time that helped us save millions of lives around the world and restore normalcy in our lives.
None of it would have been possible if scientists, universities, governments, international organizations, healthcare professionals and pharmaceutical companies had not worked together.
That is the main lesson learned during the pandemic: the importance of public-private partnerships, the power of combining efforts. Working without asking where we come from, and, instead, asking where we want to go together.
The healthcare system is made up of many actors, from healthcare professionals (doctors, nurses, assistants, etc.) to public health managers and the pharmaceutical industry. The healthcare system mainly consists of public services, but also of private providers, and both are compatible and necessary to face future challenges.
We have dire health challenges to address that need quick and smart answers. The longevity that we enjoy is causing a pressing increase in chronic diseases and multimorbidities that require us to make urgent decisions.
The fight against cancer –the great pandemic in our lives at present– should raise enough of an alarm for us to be able to work together to provide the necessary answers.
The healthcare system that we have in Spain is undoubtedly one of the best in the world, something that has been acknowledged multiple times by different specialized media outlets. We have first class healthcare professionals, cutting-edge technology and we are also worldwide leaders in organ transplantation, which showcases Spain’s great solidarity.
But all of this will not be enough to face the challenges ahead unless we are able to stop asking where we come from and, instead, start asking how we can work together to implement the necessary changes to have a healthcare system that is more efficient and better adapted to the real needs of our patients.
We must all work together, drawing from the scientific knowledge that all of us health actors have, to be able to diagnose and offer the right treatments to all patients in time.
For the sake of our patients, we must encourage and promote public-private partnerships in the healthcare field to strengthen the welfare state that we enjoy in Europe, and especially in Spain.
Carlos Parry Director Senior de Asuntos Públicos UE AstraZeneca
