JACARDI General Assembly: More than 200 experts from 21 European countries unite to improve care for cardiovascular disease and diabetes
The National Center for Cardiovascular Research (CNIC), and the Health Research Institute of Hospital 12 de Octubre (i+12), representing SERMAS, are actively participating in JACARDI through different pilot projects
More than 200 public health experts from 21 European countries, including Ukraine, met in Paris from 16-18 October for the second General Assembly of the Joint Action on Cardiovascular Diseases and Diabetes (JACARDI) to address some of the most pressing challenges in public health: the prevention and control of cardiovascular diseases (CVD) and diabetes. This European initiative is being developed through the implementation of 11 work packages and 142 pilot projects. JACARDI is coordinated by the Italian National Institute of Health (ISS) and has received funding of 53 million euros from the European Commission.
The General Assembly reviewed the achievements of the first year of this European strategy. They also delved into the pilot projects led by 76 partner institutions, each designed to improve health outcomes across Europe. A decisive step in this collective effort to reduce the burden of CVD and diabetes and improve the lives of millions of people in Europe.
During the plenary session, the director of Santé Publique France, Caroline Semaille, together with Christine Jacob-Schumacher from the French Ministry of Health, highlighted how the implementation of innovative and coordinated pilot projects at European level ‘maximises the impact of our public health actions. By bringing together health professionals, researchers, policy makers and patients, we are joining forces in the fight against cardiovascular diseases and diabetes’.
Finally, key speakers such as Stefan Craenen from the Directorate General for Health and Food Safety (DG Santé), Maria Vasile from the European Health and Digital Executive Agency (HaDEA) and Jill Farrington from the WHO Regional Office for Europe explained the European Union (EU) policies on NCDs, offering their different points of view.
142 pilot projects in focus
Through coordinated efforts among Member States, JACARDI focuses on evidence-based strategies and best practices to effectively prevent and manage NCDs and diabetes. The 142 pilot projects aim to provide evidence-based information to enable policy makers to make informed decisions to improve public health in this area.
In the framework of the General Assembly in Paris, side events on 17-18 October were dedicated to specific working groups, such as health literacy, integrated care pathways, data accessibility and patient self-management.
Our participation in JACARDI
The National Center for Cardiovascular Research (CNIC), a center under the Carlos III Health Institute (ISCIII), an entity attached to the Ministry of Science, Innovation, and Universities, and the Health Research Institute of Hospital 12 de Octubre (i+12), representing SERMAS, co-lead one of the JACARDI working groups, aimed at data availability, quality, accessibility and exchange.
The aim of this group is to design and implement pilot projects that will provide information on existing data on CVD and diabetes, standardise and harmonise data collection methods, and improve data exchange mechanisms to create a dedicated network of CVD and diabetes registries in Europe. Some of the projects being developed by the CNIC and the i+12 - SERMAS address relevant issues such as gender differences in cardiovascular health or support for self-care in patients with CVD.
‘In today's dynamic and changing world, paying deep and thoughtful attention to gender differences in CVD and diabetes is essential to drive progress and raise awareness,’ says Héctor Bueno, co-director of the working group, coordinator of the clinical area of hospitalisation and research at the Cardiology Service of the Hospital 12 de Octubre and leader of a research group at the CNIC.
For Fátima Sánchez-Cabo, head of the CNIC Bioinformatics Unit, ‘it is essential that the data are of high quality and consistent, so that the impact of JACARDI is significant. Only then will we be able to perform analyses that truly contribute to improving clinical outcomes and developing more effective prevention strategies across Europe’.
