Brussels, 12/05/2011 (Agence Europe) - In the context of the conference on eHealth in Budapest, Eucomed, which represents the interests of medical technologies and industries in Europe, published a press release in which it sets out the preconditions for effective reform of healthcare systems in Europe. Thus, patients' and healthcare providers' needs must be at the heart of online health policies. Furthermore, an interoperable framework is needed to ensure standardisation and harmonisation as well as appropriate funding systems for healthcare workers and medical personnel, in addition to legal certainty of eHealth products and services across member states. Leadership is also needed at European level to present the value of eHealth for the future of EU healthcare systems, and intelligent use should be made of new technologies for administering healthcare in the appropriate manner. Finally, funds allocated for the deployment of online health technology must be increased. “eHealth is transforming healthcare delivery across Europe (…). Eucomed and its members will become more involved and active in the eHealth arena as we have solutions to offer such as remote monitoring, which have proven to increase the efficiency and productivity of healthcare systems”, commented Anna Lefevre Skjöldebrand, who chairs the Eucomed working group on eHealth. (I.L./transl.j)