14/07/2025
https://pnc.ee/qD1B88y
The 14th EURIPA Rural Health Forum took place in Lutherstadt Wittenberg, Germany, from June 26th to June 28th, 2025. The title of the Forum was "Rural Reformation: Meeting Wellbeing and Healthcare Needs in Rural Communities." The event brought together primary healthcare professionals, and educationalists and researchers to discuss challenges and innovations in primary rural healthcare.
The Forum had 118 attendees who came from 24 countries, who participated in an interesting programme.
The Official Opening Ceremony featured speeches from prominent figures the Secretary of State Mr Wolfgang Beck; Prof. Dr. med. Heike Kielstein, Dean of the Medical Faculty of the Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Germany; and an inspiring Inaugural Address on behalf of DEGAM (German Society of General Practice/Family Medicine) was given by Professor Dr. Markus Herrman, Institute for General Practice Otto-von-Guericke-University, Magdeburg, Germany. Prof Thomas Frese, president elect of WONCA Europe, Germany and the local host of the Forum and Dr Ferdinando Petrazzuoli, President of EURIPA, Italy, both gave a welcome address.
The four keynote lectures addressed the themes of the Forum:
Prof Kerstin Hรคmel, Bielefeld University and the University of Vienna, Austria, focused on the rural workforce โCollaborative Practice in Rural Primary Health Care: Expanding Nurse Roles to Meet the Complex Needs of Chronically Ill Personsโ.
Prof Dr Andrรฉe Rochfort, the Irish College of GPs, Dublin, Ireland, and past-president of the European Society for Quality and Safety in Family Practice (EQuiP) delivered an insightful talk on "One Health".
Prof Russell Roberts, Charles Sturt University, Australia, spoke about the importance of applying research to optimise clinical and public health impact
Prof Karen Flegg, President of WONCA World, Australia, focussed on global rural healthcare.
This year EURIPA Rural Health Forum received a record number of abstract submissions and there were three parallel sessions throughout the Forum, this included 8 sessions for Oral presentations, 6 workshops sessions and, new for this year, there was a session for One slide 5 minutes. The posters were displayed throughout the Forum. You can download the abstract book, which includes all the abstracts including those from key notes speakers at https://advances.umw.edu.pl/en/euripa-2025
The full programme for the Forum is on the web site (https://forum.euripa.org).
The oral presentations included topics which ranged from rural medical education, access to medication, rural recruitment strategies, and telemedicine innovations. The award for the best oral presentation was awarded to: David Halata and Katerina Javorska, Slovak Society of General Practice, for the presentation โLet's walk together for healthโ - a way to build a healthy community
The Berit Hansen Award for the Best oral presentation by a young doctor was awarded to Romina Jasmin Frenzel, Germany, for the presentation on Needs of older people in Brandenburg
Posters also covered a wide range of topics and the award for the best poster was awarded to Jamal Bannourah, Institut fรผr Allgemeinmedizin โ Universitรคtsklinikum, Freiburg (Germany) for the poster on Model Regions for Medical Training.
The winners are entitled to free registration at the next EURIPA Forum in 2026. The winners of the best oral communication and poster presentation are also entitled to waived publishing fees for the journal Advances in Clinical and Experimental Medicine.
In addition to the workshops and oral presentations, there were additional features in the programme. An intergenerational session: โPassing the torchโ was held on-line and speakers from Australia, Croatia, UK, Canada and Germany discussed their perspectives on a variety of issues giving insight into differences and similarities between experienced and young family doctors.
Due to unforeseen circumstances practice visits were not possible, but a virtual tour followed by a discussion panel provided an insight into German rural family medicine. This was followed by an "Elevator Pitch" session which allowed participants to share research ideas, in an innovative way. In parallel, there was an interactive roundtable discussion focussing on โUnderstanding Rural Practice through sharing practice experiences: A Dialogic Workshopโ.
The final plenary session involved a panel discussion on "Rural Reformation" featured experts from Germany, Austria, Ireland, Australia and the UK.
The concept of โRural Reformationโ was captured in the Wittenberg statement which was presented in the closing ceremony, by Professor Joyce Kenkre, co-chair of the EURIPA Scientific Board, United Kingdom. The Statement is available on the website.
The programme also included time for networking and the social programme included the Welcome Reception, the Rural Dinner and a tourist trip in the UNESCO heritage centre of Wittenberg.
The Forum closed with the announcement of the 15th EURIPA Rural Health Forum, which is being planned in partnership with the Spanish Society of Family and Community Medicine (semFYC) in Cartagena (Murcia), Spain, from 1โ3 October 2026.
The 14th EURIPA Rural Health Forum successfully addressed critical issues in rural healthcare, fostering collaboration and innovation among participants. The event highlighted the importance of research, education, and policy development to improve healthcare delivery in rural communities.
Finally, EURIPA would like to thank the local host, the Institute of General Practice and Family Medicine, Martin-Luther-University Halle-Wittenberg and the Journal of Advances in Clinical and Experimental Medicine for their support in publishing the Abstract Book.
