Brussels, 02/02/2006 (Agence Europe) - On Thursday in Brussels, Markos Kyprianou, European Commissioner for health and consumer protection, in the company of the Secretary General of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), Jean Réveillon, launched a new project, the “European Health Information Platform” or “Health in Europe” project. This health information system is co-financed with €1.4 million from the EU Public Health Program. Co-financed with €1.4 million from the EU Public Health Programme, and managed by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU). It is a multimedia initiative which aims to create a network of public broadcasters and other media across Europe, and foster the exchange of reports, including television documentaries, radio broadcasts and press and internet articles on health issues. “There is a need for better and more widespread information about health issues in Europe”, said Commission Kyprianou. “This partnership of TV and radio networks across Europe through the European Broadcasting Union will help keep citizens, and in particular patients and health professionals, informed on public health issues with a European dimension.”
This platform is based on an ongoing exchange of reports on health and medicine produced by TV broadcasters for their theme magazines. Reports are offered free of rights to participating organizations. The bank of items is renewed continuously. It also includes: - a series of 8x52' TV documentaries, produced by a consortium of public service broadcasters around Europe; series of 18x20' radio documentaries; a series of animations for publication on websites of participating organizations; a network of professionals working on health magazines.
The project already involves the main public service broadcasters in ten European Countries: ARD (Germany), CT (Czech Republic), France2 (France), RTBF (Belgium), YLE (Finland), TVP (Poland), ERT (Greece), RAI (Italy), ORF (Austria), Radio Prague (Czech Republic), Radio Netherlands, Radio France International. All the other members of the European Broadcasting Union are invited to join. TVE (Spain), RTE (Ireland), RTP (Portugal), DR (Denmark), SVT (Sweden), LRT (Lithuania), RTM (Morocco), TV Channel “Russia”, AVRO (Netherlands), MTV (Hungary), RTVSLO (Slovenia), HRT (Croatia) and a number of public service radios have already expressed a strong interest. Details of the project are available on the Commission public health website:
http: //europa.eu.int/comm/health/ph_projects/2004/action1/action1_2004_11_en.htm