World Patients Alliance

Advocacy: the wpa plays a pivotal role in the global policy arena, representing patients worldwide. It dedicates substantial effort to conveying the patient perspective to regulators, policymakers, and key stakeholders, including the who, eu, and other governing bodies. To ensure the patient voice is effectively heard, wpa actively participates and presents at numerous international meetings. Below is a selection of events where wpa board directors and advisory board members were present, either virtually or in person: a.6th global ministerial summit on patient safety, santiago b.axios international, duphat 2024 healthcare conference, dubai c.european conference of hygiene and epidemiology, wisla, poland d.isqua's person and family centered advisory council (pfcac) meeting e.axios international, patient voice conference, dubai f.european patient safety foundation conference g.dia 2024, global annual meeting in san diego, ca h.conference of drug regulatory authorities (icdra) and its pre-icdra, india i.parenteral drug association (pda) good aseptic manufacturing conference, stuttgart j.growth direct day conference, maastricht, netherlands k.international pharmaceutical federation (fip) digital event l.gscf: united for self-care coalition m.whoa patient and community engagement working group meetings n.who civil society commission wg1 webinar on avian influenza h5 o.who world patient safety day (wpsd) 2024 global consultation p.wfpha ngos for equity online meeting q.spsc wpsd webinar: "getting patients the right diagnosis at the right time" r.who climate change webinar s.boehringer ingelheim pulse 2 & patient-centric summit 2024 t.world medical association conference in munich, germany u.2nd international symposium on patient safety and quality whenever possible, the wpa's travel expenses are covered by partner coalitions, reducing the organization's financial burden. In 2024, the wpa concentrated on advocacy, highlighted by the success of the world patient safety day 2024, patient safety books for children and heart of healthcare celebrating our nurses' campaigns. It collaborated with its members to organize awareness events, addressing critical patient issues through social media, print, and electronic media, reaching out to wpa members and the global patient community. The wpa successfully hosted its 2nd world patients conference in cape town, south africa, on october 19-20, 2024, under the theme "the role of the patient in a changing world." the hybrid event brought together over 1,000 participants from 124 countries, including international patient advocates, healthcare leaders, and global organizations such as the who, wma, icn, ihf, wfpha, auda-nepad, and jci. The conference served as a global platform to advance patient-centered healthcare, featuring sessions on access to healthcare, regulatory engagement, self-care, ai in health, patient safety, and the launch of patient safety books for children. It concluded with a renewed commitment to strengthen patient engagement and embed patient- centeredness in health policies and practices worldwide. To further raise awareness within the patient community, wpa released a video on how do you raise concerns about a patient's condition in the hospital? And how do you know you are getting the right diagnosis? Additionally, webinars on key topics identified in the 2023 membership survey were held. Below is a list of the global webinars organized by wpa in 2024: a.capacity building for patient advocacy groups: introducing the patient advocacy and leadership collective - from concept to launch b.self-care c.the deteriorating patient: when a hospital patient unexpectedly goes downhill, what can families do? D.mindful living: ncd prevention in europe e.challenges in implementing patient- and family-centered healthcare f.understanding and managing pain g.diagnosis: get it right, make it safe h.heart of healthcare: celebrating our nurses i.a dialogue on how to spark clinical trial and policy engagement in africa j.who patient safety rights charter

Education: effectively addressing patient related issues requires meeting the needs of both the patient community and the general public. To this end, a membership survey was conducted in 2024 to assess the needs of patient organizations, allowing wpa to better align its work with the objectives of the global patient community. Based on the survey's findings, wpa actively engaged in educational and capacity building initiatives in collaboration with its members and partner organizations. Notably, wpa worked with leading international patient organizations like the world health organization (who), global self-care federation (gscf), international pharmaceutical federation (fip), world organization of family doctors (wonca), mexican network of patients for patient safety / national autonomous university of mexico (unam), pan american patients for patient safety network, international council of nurses (icn), healthywomen, atom coalition, bristol myers squibb (bms) and world medical association (wma), to organize events aimed at educating patients. In 2024, wpa also hosted the 2nd world patients conference in south africa, providing a platform for patients to exchange information, share experiences, learn from each other, and gain insights into current healthcare challenges and their solutions. During 2nd world patients conference wpa launched a series of "patient safety books for children" in partnership with the elsevier foundation, promoting safety awareness among children aged 6-12. Available in english and portuguese, the books advance early health literacy and extend wpa's educational reach to families and schools worldwide. Wpa also launched the global "heart of healthcare: celebrating our nurses" campaign to honor nurses' vital role and highlight workforce challenges such as burnout and shortages. Through webinars, educational tools, and advocacy outreach, the campaign promoted global action to support and retain the nursing workforce. Additionally, one of wpa's founding board members, jolanta bilinska organized and hosted a conference in lodz, poland to mark world patient safety day 2024. Moreover, wpa in collaboration with its member organization, alzheimer's pakistan celebrated world patient safety day 2024 with awareness seminars, community events, and walks across cities. More detailed information about wpa's programs can be found at www.worldpatientsalliance.org. Wpa's active participation in global conferences often includes invitations to speak, present, and educate the patient advocacy community. The organization also conducted a robust social media campaign to raise awareness and educate the global community about patient-related challenges and diseases.