The European Lung Health Group (ELHG) gathered in Vienna during the ERS Congress 2024 to celebrate one year of the #KeepBreathing campaign, reflecting on its impact and future goals. Discussions centered around improving lung health with the new European mandates, while the group strengthened ties with WHO leaders and health advocates to advance our vision for better lung health policy in Europe.
European Lung Health Group in person meeting in Vienna
On 9 September, the ELHG gathered in Vienna, united for lung health at the ERS Congress. The in-person meeting was a celebration for the ELHG, who had the opportunity celebrate the achievements of the #KeepBreathing lung health campaign, one year since the launch of the initiative.
The organisations exchanged on the impact of the #KeepBreathing campaign launch and looked back at the MEP Lung Health Group events as well as the publication ‘#KeepBreathing: A vision for EU action on lung health 2024-2029’, and the observance of World Lung Day 2023.
Discussions also focused on new opportunities for improving lung health with the new European Parliament and European Commission mandates 2024-2029, which are the scope of our collective work.#KeepBreathing campaign supported by key health advocates
Given the prominent presence of the ELHG partners at the ERS Congress, the #KeepBreathing campaign was presented to key health advocates throughout the congress and on social media (LinkedIn & X). The European Lung Foundation (ELF) Patients’ Organisations Day provided a platform for the ELHG to engage with Dr Maria Neira (WHO Director for Public Health, Environment and Social Determinants). She appreciated the strong partnership between the nine members of the group and our reach at European level, something that she encouraged to continue investing on.
The ELHG connected with Dr Gauden Galea, (Strategic Advisor of the WHO Regional Director for Europe) who leads the work on the noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) and innovation. Dr. Galea highlighted the importance of addressing lung health holistically rather than in a fragmented way, which is a central focus of the ELHG’s #KeepBreathing campaign, working to create a better environment for lung health patients.
The ELHG will continue its #KeepBreathing campaign and joint work to address better lung health across Europe and have the #KeepBreathing vision come to fruition.
