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Successful start to the MIRACUM-DIFUTURE Symposium 2024

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The first day of the MIRACUM-DIFUTURE Symposium 2024 in Munich was a complete success and set the scene for two days of intensive discussions and inspiring presentations. With speakers from science, politics and practice, we were able to highlight a broad spectrum of current developments in health data utilization and medical informatics. From the opening by the leading minds of our partners to groundbreaking keynotes, the first day provided valuable impetus for the future of healthcare.

Here is an overview of the highlights of the day:

Welcome from Prof. Dr. Thomas F. Hofmann, President of the Technical University of Munich
Prof. Dr. Thomas F. Hofmann opened the symposium with a warm welcome. He emphasized the importance of interdisciplinary cooperation for the use of health data and the further development of medical research in Bavaria, Germany and worldwide. The Technical University of Munich and the Garching Research Center in particular play a central role in advancing innovative technologies and data solutions. Last but not least, he appealed to politicians to actively support the field of medical informatics.

Welcome from the Bavarian State Ministry of Health, Care and Prevention – MDirig Dr. Thomas Huber
Dr. Thomas Huber conveyed the words of welcome from the Bavarian Minister of Health, Judith Gerlach. He emphasized that the promotion of research and innovation in the healthcare sector makes an important contribution to improving healthcare in Bavaria and beyond. He was particularly pleased with the achievements of the MIRACUM and DIFUTURE consortia in the Bavarian cities of Erlangen and Munich. He emphasized the urgency of using health data efficiently while taking data protection and ethical principles into account. The EHDS should be a role model in Bavaria through a Bavarian Cloud and thus fill the project with life at European level. Last but not least, Mr. Huber would like to see stronger networking between clinics, medical practices and patients. In this respect, he sees the new funding of the MIDIA Hub as fundamental.

Welcome from the consortium leaders of DIFUTURE and MIRACUM – Prof. Dr. Hans-Ulrich Prokosch and Prof. Dr. Martin Boeker
Prof. Dr. Prokosch and Prof. Dr. Boeker welcomed the participants on behalf of the DIFUTURE and MIRACUM consortia, which are among the central pillars of the Medical Informatics Initiative (MII). They emphasized the progress and successes that have already been achieved, but also highlighted the tasks that still lie ahead. In this respect, young scientists are also of great importance. Last but not least, the exchange within the medical informatics community is very important. Both were therefore delighted with the large number of participants and wished everyone a successful symposiums.

Keynote: Health data use in Germany and Europe – Prof. Dr. Dirk Heckmann
In his keynote speech, Prof. Dr. Dirk Heckmann addressed the question of the extent to which the use of health data is permitted and even required from a legal and ethical perspective. He shed light on the current legal situation in Germany and Europe and argued for a balanced approach that safeguards data protection while at the same time harnessing the enormous potential of data for health research. Using an example of AI-based early detection of skin cancer, Dirk Heckmann made it clear that data can save lives. A high level of trust among all stakeholders, legal compliance and the ethical imperative to protect health and life are central to this.

Position of the AKEK: Obstacles to the use of health data – Prof. Dr. Georg Schmidt
Prof. Dr. Georg Schmidt presented the position of the Working Group of Ethics Committees (AKEK). He discussed the various hurdles that exist in the use of health data, including ethical, legal and organizational challenges. A key point was the need to recognize these barriers and overcome them through standardized and transparent processes. Professor Schmidt began by outlining the process of secondary use of health data. This highlighted the hurdles posed by data protection laws at all political levels (from European to federal law). Multicenter studies are therefore a massive challenge in terms of time and money.

Keynote: Health economic perspective – Prof. Dr. Leonie Sundmacher
Prof. Dr. Leonie Sundmacher highlighted the health economic perspective of data use based on various studies. It is currently not possible to make efficient and sustainable use of the high quality of care provided by statutory health insurance physicians for patients, as there is a lack of allocation. Accessibility in primary care is very good, especially in an international comparison; problems are currently evident in waiting times, which can be explained by unnecessary treatments, among other things. She emphasized that efficient use of data, for example through small-scale monitoring, not only contributes to improving the quality of care, but can also reduce health inequalities and cut costs in the healthcare system. Other studies analyzed the effects of different patient pathways and the relevance of billing data, among other things.

Making cash register and register data usable: The MII’s External Data Working Group – Prof. Dr. Martin Sedlmayr
Prof. Dr. Martin Sedlmayr presented the work of the “External Data” working group within the Medical Informatics Initiative. He explained how clinical routine data, health insurance data and registers can be made more accessible for research and gave insights into the progress and challenges of this process. With a high consent rate, patients generally agree to the provision of data. One of the challenges is access to the relevant data from (statutory) health insurance companies. Despite the broad consent and thus the consent of the patients, extra legal hurdles must be overcome.

The National Research Data Infrastructure for Personal Health Data (NFDI4Health) – Prof. Dr. Dagmar Waltemath
Prof. Dr. Dagmar Waltemath presented NFDI4Health, an initiative to create a national research data infrastructure for personal health data. She emphasized the importance of data standards and infrastructures in order to make health data securely and efficiently usable for research purposes. A central result of the work is a joint metadata set for health studies. A structured metadata portal has been set up in which study information from 27,000 studies can be accessed. NFDI4Health also offers workshops and training courses in which employees can receive further training.

Data Driven Tele-ICU – Dr. Sandra Dohmen
Dr. Sandra Dohmen presented innovative approaches to the use of data-driven solutions in the field of tele-intensive care (tele-ICU). She showed how real-time data and artificial intelligence can help to improve patient care in intensive care units, especially in rural areas. Most of the data comes from general care, and there are currently major difficulties in Germany in transferring this to telemedicine. According to valid studies, telemedicine can significantly improve the quality of medical treatment. The fear that patients will be transferred after a consultation is also incorrect; the vast majority of patients remain in the “small” hospitals where they were admitted.

Making basic oncology data usable in the MII: Experiences from the BZKF – Dominik Böhm
Dominik Böhm from the DIZ of the University Hospital Erlangen presented the results and experiences of the Bavarian Center for Cancer Research (BZKF) in the field of basic oncological data. He showed how cancer data can be used in the medical informatics initiative to accelerate research and improve cancer treatment. One of the foundations for this work is the FDPG: by building on this platform, many synergies can be developed

The first day of the MIRACUM-DIFUTURE Symposium was an impressive start. The various presentations and discussions have once again highlighted how crucial the responsible handling of health data is for future medical care. We are looking forward to the second day and the other exciting contributions that await us.