Within PHIRI, the Population Health Information Research Infrastructure, a Rapid Exchange Forum (REF) is organized regularly every two weeks or as needed, addressing urgent questions and current developments in population health during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond. In this one hour meeting, the participants belonging to European public health institutes, Ministries of Health, research institutions and universities as well as EU-level stakeholders answer questions and discuss experiences from their own countries related to the COVID-19 pandemic and other population health issues that require rapid responses. Each meeting is organized around a topic or set of topics of timely relevance to the participating countries, and answers to the questions are shared during the meeting as well as in writing immediately before or after the meetings. This allows a rapid exchange of information across countries to learn from each other’s challenges and best practices, and compare e.g. vaccination-, testing-, and communication strategies, reactions to new virus variants, mortality indicators, long-term pandemic monitoring and surveillance, and impact evaluations of the pandemic. The answers to questions discussed during the REF meetings are uploaded to the Health Information Portal at the latest by the end of the week in which each meeting takes place.
Please use the search function below to browse the content of previous REF meetings. In order to search for an exact phrase, you can utilize quotation marks around your search term.
Title | Question | Date | Document(s) |
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58th Rapid Exchange Forum: Covid-19 measures – Update per October 2023 | Covid-19 measures – Update per October 2023 The following Y/N questions, asked in a live poll during the meeting, are intended to be displayed on the Health Information Portal: A. Vaccination 1. Is Covid-19 vaccination for free in your country? 2. Is a booster vaccination free in your country? 3. Is Covid-19 vaccination or booster available in pharmacies? 4. Do you have a vaccination strategy / recommendation for children below 12 years? B. Surveillance 5. Is there a Long-Covid strategy in place in your country? 6. Does your country have a registry on Long-Covid patients? 7. Is there a wastewater monitoring in your country or at least regionally? 8. Is there a national Covid-19 dashboard that is currently being serviced? C. Measures 9. Are there actually any measures or restrictions in place? 10. Is self-testing for free in your country? 11. Is it possible to book a test-slot for free in your country? 12. Is it possible to book a test-slot against payment in your country? 13. Is it mandatory to wear face masks in hospital settings? 14. Is an evaluation of the pandemic measures in your country planned or already ongoing? 15. Can the pandemic response team be reactivated any time quickly (within 2 days)? |
23-Oct-2023 | |
Rapid Exchange Forum - Special Edition 6th | Harmonising advances in Long COVID research: Uniting European actors for solutions |
09-Oct-2023 | |
56th Rapid Exchange Forum: Ethical, Legal and Social Issues (ELSI) on Health Data Processing | Ethical, Legal and Social Issues (ELSI) on Health Data Processing
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25-Sep-2023 | |
55th Rapid Exchange Forum: New Covid-19 variants | New Covid-19 variants
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11-Sep-2023 | |
54th Rapid Exchange Forum: Biosimilar medicines | Biosimilar medicines
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03-Jul-2023 | |
Rapid Exchange Forum ad-hoc question (Ireland): National reviews/inquiries of the Covid-19 response | National Reviews/Inquiries of the COVID-19 Response
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16-Jun-2023 | |
53rd Rapid Exchange Forum: National action plan on postviral / postinfectious syndromes | National action plan on postviral / postinfectious syndromes Does your country have a national action plan or similar strategic policy papers regarding postviral / postinfectious syndromes (in general or associated with specific pathogens, e.g. Long COVID)? We are interested in documents that cover aspects such as care pathways, healthcare planning and financing, data collection and registries, research, awareness raising and others. Please provide links to the relevant documents or websites? |
05-Jun-2023 | |
52nd Rapid Exchange Forum Special EUPHW Edition: Covid-29 impact on population's mental health | Covid-19 impact on population´s mental health
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22-May-2023 | |
Rapid Exchange Forum ad-hoc question (Belgium): Covid-19 management tool | Covid-19 management tool Did your country used, during the COVID-19 pandemic, a specific tool to determine the level of severity of the pandemic, at national level (e.g., level 1, level 2, level3)? If yes,
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10-May-2023 | |
51st Rapid Exchange Forum: Health crisis procedures and exercises | Health crisis procedures and exercises
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08-May-2023 |