Navigating the European Health Data Space: Mapping Essential Public Health Competencies and Personas

Chairs: Syed Abrar Ahmed, Anabelle Macedo Silva & Dr Rok Hrzic

Mission and objectives


  • To introduce the European Health Data Space (EHDS), including its timeline and key regulatory components relevant to public health, and the requirements to train health professionals (Article 83).
  • To explore the impact of EHDS on the public health workforce and define necessary digital and interoperability competencies.
  • To explore the possibilities and challenges of EHDS regarding Fundamental Rights and Health Equity protection perspective
  • To present and discuss the ASPHER-XiA task force’s “persona” development approach with public health professionals and experts, which seeks to identify specific EHDS competencies relevant to distinct Essential Public Health Functions (EPHFs).
  • To crowd-source and refine the mapping of EPHFs against EHDS components through active audience participation.

Themes and topics

The workshop will explore the European Health Data Space (EHDS), covering its regulatory framework, implementation timeline, and data interoperability components, while addressing connections to Fundamental Rights and digital divide prevention. It will focus on Public Health Workforce Development by examining the Essential Public Health Functions (WHO framework) and the diversity of professional roles through the use of “Personas.” Additionally, the session will identify specific Digital Competencies and Interoperability skills required for various public health roles, such as surveillance versus health promotion. Finally, a structured Validation and Mapping exercise will align public health tasks with digital data requirements to ensure practical relevance.

Intended audience


The target audience includes a diverse range of public health professionals, researchers and educators. It is not limited to digital health experts; rather, it targets professionals working across all Essential Public Health Functions, from monitoring and surveillance to health promotion and workforce planning, who need to understand how the EHDS will impact their specific day-to-day roles. The workshop is also relevant for policy makers interested in workforce capacity building and curriculum developers looking to integrate digital competencies into public health education.

Agenda


TimeSession
00:00 – 00:10Part 1: Introduction to the EHDS and XiA
00:10 – 00:20Part 2: Building capacity of public health professionals in the EHDS Era
00:20 – 00:30Part 3: Q&A
00:30 – 01:20Part 4: Interactive Validation Exercise
01:20 – 01:30Closing

Speakers


Syed Abrar Ahmed (Chair)

ISCTE University Institute of Lisbon, Maastricht University


Anabelle Macedo Silva (Chair)

Public Health Institute of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro /IESC /UFRJ


Dr Rok Hrzic (Chair)

Maastricht University, ASPHER

Acknowledgements


We acknowledge the support from EU-cofounded project XiA – Xpanding Innovative Alliance (Grant Agreement n°101187650, 2025 – 2028).