Strengthening Health Skills Through Regional Collaboration: EUREGHA at the EUVECA Final Conference

 On 24 March, EUREGHA participated at the EUVECA Final Conference in Brussels, titled “The importance of vocational education and training (VET) and regional collaboration to ensure sustainability in the European healthcare sector.”  

The event brought together representatives from European institutions, regional and local authorities, education and training providers, and other key stakeholders to reflect on the evolving role of VET in supporting the long-term sustainability and resilience of healthcare systems across Europe. 

Against the backdrop of increasing workforce shortages, demographic change, and the accelerating digital and green transitions, discussions throughout the conference pointed to a shared conclusion: incremental, project-based approaches are no longer sufficient. Instead, there is a growing need for systemic, coordinated, and forward-looking strategies capable of addressing structural skills mismatches and anticipating future needs. 

In this perspective, participants emphasized the importance of improving the identification and anticipation of skills gaps, strengthening organizational cultures that enable innovation and adaptability, and promoting more integrated approaches that combine recruitment, training, retention, and career development. The discussion also highlighted the added value of shared platforms and common European tools, which can help capitalize on project results and make them accessible across different ecosystems and territories. 

A Systemic Approach to Health Skills: EUREGHA’s Contribution 

In this evolving landscape, EUREGHA reaffirmed its commitment to supporting a more strategic and connected approach to health workforce development through its active involvement in the large-scale partnership for the healthcare sector under the Pact for Skills, including the BeWell initiative. These initiatives aim to support the upskilling and reskilling of healthcare professionals, while contributing to the development of more resilient, adaptable, and future-oriented health ecosystems across Europe. 

During the conference, EUREGHA’s Executive Director, Michele Calabrò, emphasised the central and often under-recognised role of regional and local authorities, which in many EU member states are directly responsible for the organization, delivery, and governance of healthcare services. In this regard, he stressed the need to better connect initiatives across governance levels, ensuring stronger alignment between European priorities and regional realities. 

His intervention also highlighted the importance of continuity, scalability, and policy integration, underlining that the impact of EU-funded projects should not remain confined to their duration. Instead, building on the results achieved through initiatives such as BeWell and strengthening cooperation among regional actors will be essential to ensure long-term structural change. 

The Trento Experience: A Regional Model for Digital Health Skills 

A key contribution to the conference came from Olivia Balagna, representing the Autonomous Province of Trento, who presented the region’s experience in developing a comprehensive and integrated health education ecosystem rooted in digital transformation. 

Her intervention illustrated how digital health in Trento has progressively evolved from an innovation priority into a structural necessity, essential to ensuring both equity of access and territorial connectivity, particularly in geographically diverse contexts. This transformation has been supported by a coherent and long-term digital strategy, sustained policy continuity, and stable governance at the provincial level. 

Through flagship initiatives such as Trentino Salute 4.0 and FormLab, the Autonomous Province of Trento is investing in the development of digital skills, AI literacy, and telemedicine competencies among healthcare professionals. At the same time, it is fostering strong and sustained collaboration between public authorities, healthcare providers, research institutions, and training actors. 

This integrated approach demonstrates how regional ecosystems can play a pivotal role in bridging policy and implementation, ensuring that innovation is effectively translated into practice while responding to concrete territorial needs. 

Regions as “Micro-Cosmoses” for Innovation and Skills Development 

EUREGHA’s contribution was further reinforced by Marco Di Donato, Policy & Project Manager, who described regions as “micro-cosmoses” where a diverse set of actors, including healthcare providers, education and training institutions, industry representatives, and policymakers, can align around shared objectives and co-create solutions. 

From this perspective, structured concertation represents a critical governance tool that goes beyond ad hoc collaboration. It enables stakeholders to identify systemic gaps, anticipate emerging trends, and continuously adapt skills provision in response to technological, organizational, and societal changes. In doing so, regions can act as laboratories for innovation, where new approaches to workforce development can be tested, refined, and scaled. 

Looking Ahead: Scaling Impact and Strengthening European Cooperation 

Looking ahead, a key priority for EUVECA will be to expand its network by onboarding new regions and to ensure that the platform can generate tangible and context-sensitive value across diverse territorial settings, while continuing to serve as a space for mutual learning and exchange. 

More broadly, the discussions highlighted the importance of strengthening synergies between ongoing initiatives, building on the results developed under BeWell, and leveraging shared European tools and platforms to maximize impact. Enhancing these connections will be crucial not only to avoid fragmentation, but also to support the emergence of a more coherent, resilient, and future-oriented European approach to health skills. 

Ultimately, reinforcing the role of regions and fostering stronger multi-level governance will be key to ensuring that innovation in skills development translates into sustainable, long-term transformation of Europe’s healthcare systems.