Bayer Hellas is investing in our nation’s innovative and efficient health care system that delivers the greatest value to patients through the innovative HealthCare Accelerator program, completed within one year. Through a network of coordinated actions that break new ground in medical education, improve clinical practice and strengthen clinical research, the company has developed a pioneering “ecosystem” in which the three pillars of health are strengthened and interact with each other through promising synergies. Because for Bayer Hellas, education, practice and research are not separate areas of activity, but well-coordinated links of one chain. The positive first year report from the company’s landmark healthcare initiative most aptly portends everything the HealthCare Accelerator has in store for 2023.

Starting in the field of clinical research, Bayer Hellas supports practical programs to inform and educate medical scientists about the principles of good clinical practice and the conduct of clinical research. It will invest 12 million euros to include Greek research centers in Bayer AG’s international research program for three years from 2022 to 2025, and at the same time support the corresponding “Clinical Research Academy” organized and run by the Medical Center. Society of Athens, in which about 50 medical professionals attended seminars on the principles of good clinical practice and the conduct of clinical trials.

However, a key step for an effective healthcare system is to support and educate future healthcare professionals about innovation and clinical research. Thus, Bayer Hellas provides scholarships for the program Bayer Foundation Research Fellowships, participates in university career days and cooperates with leading educational institutions of the country. For example, in 2022, the company organized three major information events on the theme “Clinical research as a career opportunity in the life sciences” in Athens, Patras and Heraklion with the participation of 250 undergraduate and graduate students of the Schools of Health and other Schools of Science. In 2023, the company plans to recruit more universities such as the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki and the University of Democritus in Thrace.

Accordingly, as healthcare professionals gain access to innovative technologies, the concept of a patient-centered and efficient healthcare system is getting closer to being realized. Two revolutionary telemedicine methods funded by Bayer Hellas serve this purpose. These are DDiVAT for ophthalmology and VTECareNet for venous thromboembolism, which are being developed at the Democritus University of Athens and the University of Thessaly, respectively, and are already in the evaluation phase. In addition, the company completed the first phase of the Level-up|G4A program involving 5 startups developing advanced telemedicine and digital health tools.

But patients also need to be informed, to know, to own. This is the philosophy of Bayer Hellas’ Patient Navigator to inform patients and their families about the safe use of medicines, their benefits and risks in a simple and understandable way. At the same time, this digital portal provides tips for a better understanding of the information written on pharmaceutical packaging, as well as illustrative examples for the correct reading and interpretation of statistics. In the direction of patient education, the company also supports educational workshops within the framework of the Patient Summit in cooperation with the Hellenic Patients Association and offers access to EUPATI online trainings for further education.

And if 2022 laid the foundation for the creation of the HealthCare Accelerator “ecosystem”, then this was only the beginning. In the coming months, we will see synergies expand, the dialogue on digital health will grow and develop in a fruitful direction, but, above all, the lives of patients will change for the better.