EHTEL highlighted the EHDS at its Thought Leader Symposium. Going bigger and more radical, we joined forces with the Radical Health Festival Helsinki (RHFH).

Two events, one powerful experience: Participants obtained exclusive insights at the EHTEL Symposium while tapping into the vibrant energy and wide expert network of RHFH.

📅 The Symposium’s high-impact EHDS sessions

After a highly successful EHTEL members' matchmaking meeting, EHTEL’s Thought Leader Symposium agenda zoomed in on the European Health Data Space (EHDS).

Each one-hour session:

• drew on insights from leading-edge implementers
• was interactive, based on a synergy of state-of-the-art working papers 
• offered the chance to provide input through discussions, polls, and exercises.

▶️ Session 1 | The EHDS Regulation of EHRs: Blind Spots and Pain Points

The EHDS regulation inevitably contained some blind spots in the face of the complexity of Europe’s healthcare delivery. The blind spots are now emerging and causing pain points for implementers. The session featured perspectives from healthcare providers, industry and Member States, and discussed policy recommendations to ensure a successful EHDS implementation. Watch the video>>

▶️ Session 2 | Structured High-Quality Data with AI

The EHDS addresses the syntax of health systems transactions, though not yet the use of international semantic resources. What are the necessary conditions to implement a meaningful - in particular semantic - interoperability strategy in a dedicated organisation? Which infrastructure, tools and competences are necessary? Can AI meet the clinician dream with coding happening in the background with no or very minimal human intervention?

▶️ Session 3 | EHR Algorithm Communication

This session will discuss the need to have data that fuels algorithmic tools that are of high quality, meaningfully structured, and easily sharable. Achieving impact requires comprehensive, multi-level strategies - from local hospital workflows up to European semantic frameworks - with human beings and AI working hand-in-hand to progressively refine data ecosystems.

▶️ Session 4 | The Yellow Button - Innovating for Everyday Life with Patient Access

The right of patients to access their own health data isn’t only great for individuals who are keen to know more about their health. Indeed, it opens the door to an ecosystem of innovative solutions that wouldn’t be possible if the data were to remain locked inside hospitals or labs.

EHTEL's working papers on the EHDS:

EHTEL members and experts, from EHTEL's EHDS Implementers Task Force, have co-created three forward-looking working papers on what implementers really need from the EHDS. Developed over six months through workshops, consultations, and validation rounds, on 21 January 2026, the working papers' key messages and recommendations drove discussions at the EHTEL Symposium, hosted by the Radical Health Festival Helsinki. 

So, what do you really need from the EHDS?

Symposium participants shared their feedback with us during the Symposium. EHTEL is consolidating all comments into clear, actionable messages, making sure your feedback reaches the policymaking table. 

Symposium sponsor & partners