Editor Sophie Clutterbuck introduces Health Europa Quarterly Issue 10, here our book delves into the world of Digital & E-health, medical cannabis, along with disease and conditions.
Healthcare is changing in many ways and Health Europa Quarterly Issue 10 captures the evolving landscape.
Whilst pressure on services is mounting from every angle, there are solutions in the pipeline which can offer badly needed respite from the challenges facing systems of all models across Europe. The challenges of the United Kingdom’s National Health Service are well documented and with no clear resolution to the ongoing Brexit saga in sight, this will likely continue to afflict staffing levels with EU nationals continuing to abandon the institution – which celebrated its 71st anniversary last week – due to ongoing uncertainty regarding their future. Adding to the existing burden it has been revealed that staff are increasingly expected to police immigration, highlighted in this edition with a piece by the Immigration Advice Service on the ethics and fallout of the so called ‘hostile environment’ policy.
Meanwhile healthcare providers across Europe continue to face the ongoing challenges associated with the aging population, increasing disease showing no signs of abating and escalating obesity across the continent. With this in mind, innovation is desperately needed and whilst demand will soon be reaching fever pitch, the supply is beginning to emerge.
With these themes in mind I welcome you to the tenth edition of Health Europa Quarterly, which takes a closer look at the current issues in health policy. Artificial intelligence, data, and the ongoing leaps in digital innovation are featured as part of our ever increasing Digital & E-Health section as healthcare systems move to increase efficiency and relieve pressure on their personnel.
As with previous editions medical cannabis remains a strong focus with a spotlight on the budding legal and regulatory frameworks and cultivation operations in various countries across Europe. Once again, we compare the fledgling but ever developing ventures on the continent to the more established medical cannabis industries in Canada and North America which continue to flourish and influence European nations.
Included in this edition are viewpoints on the European market from Deepak Anand of Materia Ventures renowned for his expertise on cannabis policy worldwide, and Dr Frank D’Ambrosio who established his own clinic specialising in prescribing medical cannabis in California, before moving on to advocacy and advising governments overseas along with the World Health Organization’s Expert Committee on Drug Dependence.
Elsewhere we examine the use of cannabis as a harm reduction strategy, with the potential to not only spare opioid use, but arguably reduce existing dependence on a variety of substances. With perspectives from the Canadian Mental Health Association on the opioid crisis, and Gregor Zorn of the European Cannabinoid Therapy Association on why cannabis should not be considered a last resort when traditional therapies have failed, it is clear there is still much to learn across the globe about the potential applications of cannabinoids.
Drawing issue 10 to a close is an update from the European Joint Programme on Rare Diseases and an interview with Dr Robert Langer of MIT in line with European Week against Cancer, looking back at the revolutionary role of controlled release large molecules in Cancer treatment – a development for which he was awarded the Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering for in 2015.
I hope that you find the pages to come as informative to read as I have found in putting them together and as always, I would welcome any feedback, comments, or suggestions for future editions you may have.
Sophie Clutterbuck
Editor
Health Europa Quarterly
Any interesting articles on remyelination?