Amsterdam Public Health

Program

Parallel Program Sessions

Health Behaviors and Chronic Diseases

Public health and environmental sustainability share a close connection, offering numerous opportunities for mutually beneficial behavior changes, such as opting for active transport over cars and reducing meat consumption. Indeed, working in public health research, often brings a sense of a certain individual-level responsibility for conducting more healthy and sustainable behavior. What can “I” do to make a difference? And is this behavior genuinely more sustainable, or has it unintended counterfactual effects? Also, does this behavior end with eating less meat and flying less often, or does our privileged position within an university demand something more from us? And what is needed at an organizational level? Should we aim for e.g., being a plant-based university; or does this ambition have adverse effects because it fosters elitism and the risk of losing the wider population? And how do these individual or organizational-level actions compare with the wider system in which they operate, especially in contrast to the higher ecological footprint of commercial companies and in the current political climate? Is there a way to impact on the system as well?

Prior to this HBCD session, we will ask HBCD members to list the (research) projects relating to health and sustainability they are currently involved in. Based on this, we will invite around four speakers to give a short pitch about integrating public health and environmental responsible behavior change, from their perspective and the pitfalls of climate-friendly behavior change. In the second part of the HBCD session, we will organize an interactive discussion/debate where we pose several questions to the HBCD audience, such as: Should we focus on individual behavior change, or on changing the system? How to deal with issues such as green-washing or the creation of sustainability on paper only? How do we make sure to reach the full population and transition in a fair way? What is our role as individual researchers, APH, our university and society as a whole?

Mental Health

In 2024, the Mental Health research program aims to boost its network, both internally and externally! At the APH Spring Meeting, we will give an update on the status of the research program and the research agenda. With the help of the MH Junior Council, we are working on a strategic implementation of the research agenda for our junior researcher. After this brief update from the juniors, we will continue with a showcase of our internal network. All major departments (Amsterdam UMC and VU) involved in our research program will briefly share what they are working on this year, their spearheads, flagships and highlighted projects. We are looking forward to a great afternoon where we can learn more from each other, the departments, ongoing projects and our own Mental Health research program. Boost your network!

Societal Participation and Health & Personalized Medicine

Dissemination of research by means of social media

Dissemination of research findings is very important and social media offers great platforms for doing so, but how do you use social media? In this workshop, organized by Societal Participation and Health & Personalized Medicine, we share experiences, challenges, and best practices of disseminating research by means of social media. You are invited to work together on a communication plan for dissemination your own research via social media with the help of experts.

Aging and Later Life

What is the Aging & Later Life Programme about and what can it mean for you?

Join this bottom up session on what the Aging & Later Life Programme is about and what it can mean for you. Help enrich the ALL programme to better meet the needs of the members (juniors, mediors, seniors).

We will share the comments and suggestions that we received from the visitation committee during the APH visitation in January and discuss these together. We would like to reflect on the current mission: ‘To help people grow old, be old and die in the best possible way’, and accompanying vision ‘By stimulating knowledge generation, dissemination, and the training of future healthcare professionals’ and debate how we can make this work.

We will use creative methods including debate, break-out sessions and word clouding. This will provide input for our action plan for the coming years.

Quality of Care

Join us in tackling the pressing issue of research waste. Did you know that a staggering 50% of registered clinical trials are never reported, while another 50% of published research turns out to be unusable? Moreover, half of all clinical research is conducted without systematically examining previously published results. This inefficiency not only squanders valuable resources but also exacerbates the growing scarcity in healthcare. How can we ensure the judicious allocation of research resources to address this challenge effectively? Join the conversation, during the Quality of Care session, and be part of the solution.

Methodology

Know your method!

Using rigorous methods are crucial to make impact with your research. We will start the session with discussing how to choose a method for your research and present some do’s and don’ts. We will then move to developing new methods. Why do we need innovation in methods, and how is this done? What can we do to implement a new method? We will present examples from amongst others developing risk of bias (critical appraisal) instruments, statistical methods and qualitative research, and will use an interactive format to help you reflect on your own research.

Digital Health

Clarity, even when dealing with data clouds: towards a brighter future in Digital Health

In the rapidly evolving world of digital health, we aim for a brighter future, freed from unnecessary complexity and administrative burdens. This session organized by Digital Health focuses on simplifying and clarifying the way we harness data and technology, aiming to promote better decision-making and enhanced health outcomes. We will explore how to "de-clutter" our use of data and health-related technologies to work more efficiently and extract greater value from our digital health initiatives. For this session two inspiring speakers will be invited to share their insights and expertise on the topic.

But that's not all – we have an exciting opportunity for researchers to seize. In an open pitch competition, a maximum of 6 APH Digital Health researchers will have the opportunity to pitch their research ideas related to the topic of de-cluttering and dealing with data to work more efficiently. APH DH members are invited to apply for this pitching opportunity. Up to 6 researchers who apply for a pitch can also receive a complimentary registration for the HLTH Europe conference held in Amsterdam from 17-20 June. The Pitch Competition Winner will receive a research grant in the amount of €25K (in full).

Invited researchers will have the opportunity to present their research ideas in a short 7-minute pitch (‘Pecha Kucha-style'), and registration for the pitching slots is based on an initial assessment, and if needed, a random selection. Don't miss this chance to showcase your innovative ideas and compete for valuable funding in the vibrant field of digital health!

This year APH's Global Health research program will not organize a parallel session.

Register now!

APH Inspirational Quote Contest 2024

At this year’s APH Spring Meeting, themed ‘a brighter future’, we will set up a wall of inspiration that presents a selection of inspirational quotes from APH-researchers. We are curious about what motto drives APH-researchers, in life itself and/or work-related. All APH-researchers and staff are invited to submit a sentence that keeps them moving to ‘do their thing’ fiercely and fully in life. By exhibiting your quote, you also have a chance to be selected as one of the winners and receive a fantastic prize: a voucher with a value of €100 for the 3 quotes with the most votes!
Read more on the APH Inspirational Quote Contest 2024 newspage!