I was pending to tell you about my attendance to the event I told you a month ago.
The event was made up around three panel discussions, focused on three themes:
Regional Experiences. This panel featured the following speakers (including those they may be potential contacts at European level):
- Mr. Peter Raeymaekers. Flanders' Care, Cabinet Advisor of the Flemish Minister of Welfare, Public Health and Family Affairs. Belgium;
- Prof. Dr. Winrich Breipohl (Research Group, Health & Quality of Life Industries), North Rhine-Westphalia. Germany
- Mr. Edwin Mermans. Smart Care Policy Programme Officer (Department of Social and Cultural Development, Province Noord-Brabant. The Netherlands.
The conclusions I draw from this panel discussion are not new to us:
o The issue of aging is common to all European regions.
o There are clear opportunities in this business problems (but not developed in detail any of them).
Support policies and instruments. This table was information about certain financial instruments for projects related to the elderly:
- Program AAL (Ambient Assisted Living). Program between 2008 and 2013 to finance projects related to information technology.
- The Basque Government. Co financing projects undertaken by SMEs, facilitating the entry of the products or services on the market for social services and health products.
- European Innovation Partnership on Active and Healthy Ageing. There is a direct instrument of financing projects, but rather a platform (budding) at European level on aging, with the aim of increasing active life 2 years people.
Of the three financing tools shown, the most interesting proved to be the second, since it involved direct support to SMEs with innovative products and services, but the instrument is only for the Basque Country, which is not applicable beyond that region. Other tools, I personally knew the AAL, but its theme is perhaps away from our goals at BIO LIFE. The latest financing tool (European Innovation Partnership on Active and Healthy Ageing) seemed a bit far from the SMEs, and I do not know to what extent will formalize something that could lead to support initiatives or projects.
Innovation in products, services and new business models. This panel discussion brought together people who are members of several Spanish companies or companies operating in Spain in the field of the problems associated with aging. Although the this panel of discussion was going to be perhaps the most interesting panel of discussion (as it was going to bring together companies that could transmit specific experiences), the types of companies (all but one of these large firms) and their activity (focused primarily on health care services to elderly people with difficulties) made this final panel of discussion as not as productive as I thought.
At a global level and in the general approach of the day, there are some things I would like to highlight:
- There was high attendance. The presence of the Basque government and its network of technology centers (Tecnalia) as organizers did attend a number of people (I estimate that well over 100 companies).
- There was no presence of organizations or individuals that could be representative of elderly people.
- All examples of successful experience in health care services were associated with a greater understanding of elderly people as persons struggling to fend for themselves, nor persons with capacity to demand specific products or services, I mean, actives consumers. There was no trace of examples of products that elderly can consume on their own initiative (certainly not products or services related to food).
- Unless financing tool shown by the Basque government, there was no immediate possibilities opened or offers to support projects that want to develop a product or service related to the elderly.
As a final thought, I think we must take into account these last things if we want to create a network with enough strength to continue working whe BIO LIFE is over.
Well, that´s all for now.
Happy new year to all of you!
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