IFHE NEWS
From the IFHE President: ‘Huge challenges’, but opportunities grasped in an eventful two years The IFHE’s outgoing President, Daniela Pedrini, looks back at the highlights of an eventful two years in office.
“Typically during their two-year term, the IFHE President has the opportunity to speak to many associates of the IFHE member associations on several occasions. Obviously, this hasn’t been possible during my tenure, with the outbreak of the pandemic, and in the absence of congresses and international travel. We’ve been limited to videocalls, and have missed the chance to speak face to face, in the informal way we all enjoy. “Since the Spring of 2020, healthcare
professionals have had huge challenges. We’ve transformed and repurposed the spaces in our hospitals and healthcare structures, while striving to reduce risks to our staff, and being aware of climate change, as well as essential energy efficiency.
“IFHE has been very active and
involved in many activities around the world, starting with the success of our first online congress. We hadn’t expected the reach, the number of countries participating, or the reliability of the technology, but I was so proud of the team that managed to build this congress, and would like to thank those who also took time to give their advice and feedback to create this event at such a challenging time.
Involvement in WHO projects “I was also delighted to see IFHE involvement in WHO projects around the world. The ability to mobilise health technicians so quickly for urgent projects was impressive, and we hope to continue the collaboration we have initiated. We also launched a new communications strategy, designed to improve members’
experience. A newsletter has been released periodically, and we hope to feature not only IFHE news, but also to spread the news of our national associations. “In
addition to the IFHE
International Building Award, we’ve since seen the emergence of the
20 Health Estate Journal November 2022
Energy Awards, and the Global Energy Awards 2022. We are also very happy
to have welcomed new countries to the IFHE, namely: ‘A’ Members: n The Indonesian Association of Hospital Engineering (IAHE);
n The Bosnia and Herzegovina Medical and Biological Engineering Society (DMBIUBIH). ‘B’ Member: The Mexican Association of Engineer Specialists in Health (AMIESAC). “Looking ahead, we must provide the best possible service to our existing members too – to retain them in IFHE, and demonstrate that being a member of the Federation brings real added value. “The IFHE has now been recognized by
the World Health Organization (WHO) as a Non-Governmental Organisation, and has official relations with the WHO. Over my two-year term, we collaborated with the WHO, introducing rapid healthcare teams of engineers and architects to undertake urgent health emergency projects in Latin America and Africa. We are very proud of the results.
Environmental sustainability “In addition to tackling the pandemic, and in alignment with the WHO, the IFHE believes that environmental sustainability – along with patient safety in healthcare facilities management – is the most significant current issue facing us. The IFHE continues to embrace every opportunity to positively promote improvements in its Environmental Sustainability Policy to its member associations. The Environmental Sustainability Policy document has been updated and approved, and can be accessed at:
https://tinyurl.com/bdzj8xr4 The IFHE and IFHE-EU also contributed
to the diffusion of a best practice guide – in the form of the jointly produced IHEEM, HEFMA, and Carbon & Energy Fund document, A healthcare engineering roadmap for delivering net zero carbon. (
https://tinyurl.com/trd6ua2j) “As President, I made several
contributions to national and international publications in healthcare, including the IFHE Digest, HEJ, the IFHE Newsletter, and the book, Healthcare Environment: Safety and Health for Patients and Health Workers (ABDEH - Brazil), etc. I also wrote an article for Health Management, promoting IFHE across the world.
“One of the most important activities in the last 12 months (2021-2022) has been the new communication strategy. We now have a very active group, with a newsletter sent out periodically to update members. My two years as President have seen increased
activity for IFHE worldwide. Our people are focused on the key issues, and we are looking to expand our networks and our communication strategies for our members’ benefit. Our mission is to share knowledge and experience in order to develop our expertise. IFHE activities cover the Americas, Australia, Asia, Africa, and Europe.
Activities in progress “Recent discussion within the Exco has included a plan to start a series of webinars as an added member service. This can be undertaken at a low cost. and will provide members with useful information on key healthcare issues. The webinars will be a platform to compare and contrast our experiences and learning, and the healthcare issues we all face. The first of the series may focus on the learning paths of our award winners, via video interviews. It is very important to maintain the visibility of IFHE at congresses and international events, and to ensure the promotion of the Federation by the host national associations. “In conclusion, it has been a difficult
two years for all our countries, with the pandemic, the associated travel restrictions, and the energy crisis, so I would like to thank you all for your contributions, endurance, and hard work. “On a technical level, we need to
embrace digital transformation and support new areas of research that complement our work, such as Artificial Intelligence and Big Data. Last but not least, we need to continue improving our members’ experience – by listening to their concerns – and discussing the important issues, whether it’s climate change and energy efficiency, the cost of living and the energy crisis, the pandemic, membership, fees, donations, or IFHE policies. “Let’s face these challenges together.
Thank you all.”
Ing. Daniela Pedrini (Italy), IFHE President
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