On 3 October 2025, Active Citizenship Network hosted a closed EU workshop in Brussels, aimed at patient advocacy group representatives from among its partners. This high-level meeting was part of the 2025 project “Advancing Respiratory Care at the EU Level” and built on activities that promote respiratory care across Europe, shifting the EU's approach to respiratory care from emergency-driven responses to integrated, long-term strategies embedded in broader health policies.
During the workshop it was also presented the collaborative Call-to-Action: "Towards the Development of an EU Respiratory Health Plan", drafted by the EU Working Group on Respiratory Care, to promote the inclusion of best practices in the 2025 EU Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) guidelines, as well as strengthening institutional support for high-risk patient care and the prevention of non-communicable diseases (NCDs).
Also communication played a central role, thanks to the #CareForAll 2025 campaign, designed to raise awareness among policymakers and the public, amplify the voices of patients and civil society, and reinforce the urgency of treating respiratory care as a top EU health priority.
The initiative builds on the momentum of the activities carried out by ACN in 2023 through the EU project “Protecting the value of access to healthcare during and after the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe: focus on antivirals” and in 2024 through the EU project “Empowering & mobilizing PAGs on COVID-19 prevention & treatments for vulnerable target groups”, which laid the foundations through political engagement, awareness-raising campaigns and collaboration with Members of the European Parliament.
PROGRAMME
Moderator: Bianca Ferraiolo, Head of the Representative Office to the EU - Cittadinanzattiva-Active Citizenship Network
09:00 – 09:10 Introduction & tour de table
Mariano Votta, Responsible for EU Affairs - Cittadinanzattiva-Active Citizenship Network
09:10 – 09:25 Incorporating COVID-19 Into the Broader Narrative on Respiratory Diseases. A Citizens' and Patients’ Perspective Towards the Development of An EU Respiratory Health Plan
Bianca Ferraiolo, Head of the Representative Office to the EU - Cittadinanzattiva-Active Citizenship Network
09:25 – 10:05 Overview on respiratory care at the EU level
From prevention to treatment
Guglielmo Trovato, Executive Vice President - European Medical Association (EMA)
Interacting with patients: what they experience and what they seek
Panagiota Tsikala, Policy Officer - European Specialist Nurses Organisation (ESNO)
10:05 – 11:25 Policy Advocacy activities at EU level
From the Steering Group on Influenza Vaccination to the Steering Group on Prevention of Respiratory Infections
Mikaela Nordenfelt, member of the Steering Group on Prevention of Respiratory Infections, Head of Partnership & Coalition at ESWI
Presentation of the Call-to-Action “Towards the Development of an EU Respiratory Health Plan”
Kinga Wójtowicz, Head of the Brussels Office - RPP Group
Luca Mario Comincioli, Senior Consultant - RPP Group
11:20 – 12:25 Communication and dissemination session
#CareForAll 2025 communication campaign “Advancing Respiratory Care at the EU Level”
Mita Dhullipala, Founder & CEO – MD Health Communications
Satinder Phull, Policy, Advocacy & Public Affairs Lead - MD Health Communications
Stephanie Harris, Associate Director - MD Health Communications
12:25 – 12:45 Next steps
Bianca Ferraiolo, Head of the Representative Office to the EU at Cittadinanzattiva-Active Citizenship Network
To download the participants' list, click here
To watch the photo gallery on Active Citizenship Network’s LinkedIn page, click here
Click here and here to read articles published by our media partners.
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The event is realized thanks to the unconditional support of
