Medicine that treats “everyone in the same way” is giving way to a healthcare model capable of reading the biological, genetic, clinical, and environmental history of each patient. It is within this transformation that, in Palermo, on June 5, a memorandum of understanding was signed by the President of the Order of Physicians of Palermo, Salvatore Amato, and the President of Fondazione HEAL Italia, Massimo Midiri, bringing together healthcare training, research, and innovation to bring precision medicine ever closer to clinical practice.
The agreement brings together two complementary worlds. On the one hand, the scientific network of HEAL Italia, a foundation established through the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR) to develop precision medicine, omics sciences, and digital health, and now a coordinating hub for a national ecosystem. On the other, the Order of Physicians of Palermo, a national Agenas standard provider with extensive experience in CME-accredited healthcare training, the management of educational pathways, and professional development.
The core aim of the agreement is to help shorten the distance between advanced research and the daily work of physicians, dentists, healthcare professionals, and administrative staff. Precision medicine, in fact, is not only a scientific horizon. It is a methodological shift that affects prevention, diagnosis, treatment selection, hospital organization, data management, and the healthcare system’s ability to use new technologies appropriately.
Today, Fondazione HEAL Italia coordinates a multidisciplinary network of more than 70 partners, including universities, Scientific Institutes for Research, Hospitalization and Healthcare (IRCCS), companies, and healthcare organizations. The goal is to share knowledge, tools, and innovative solutions to support the Italian healthcare system in the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of chronic diseases.
“This is not only about introducing new technologies, but about building a new professional culture capable of accompanying change rather than undergoing it. The real challenge is to train a healthcare workforce able to use those technologies responsibly, within appropriate and sustainable clinical pathways,” explained President Amato, who is also a member of the executive board of the National Federation of Orders of Surgeons and Dentists (FNOMCeO). “Precision medicine also imposes a new vocabulary on healthcare. Words such as genomics, artificial intelligence, microbiota, clinical data, innovative therapies, and digital health must become real skills and not remain conference formulas. The alliance with HEAL Italia seeks to give shape to this transition and bring person-centered medicine out of laboratories and into the training of those who care for patients every day. It is an open framework that points to an inevitable direction: the healthcare of the future can no longer be built only around structures, but also around the ability to update skills and organizational models. In this scenario, Palermo can truly become one of the places where training becomes a concrete lever for technological and cultural transfer.”
The topics covered by the agreement
The memorandum provides for joint activities on precision medicine, gender medicine, innovation, PNES (Psychogenic Non-Epileptic Seizures), and the Mediterranean diet. Courses, seminars, workshops, conferences, and other initiatives are planned, including online formats, with attention paid not only to scientific aspects but also to legal, economic, and organizational ones.
The program covers a broad health area: oncology, rare diseases, cardiovascular conditions, metabolic diseases, neurosciences, microbiota, and hospital infections. Different fields, but all connected by the same need: to train professionals capable of interpreting complex data, working in networks, and applying increasingly targeted models of care.
For the Order of Physicians of Palermo, the challenge lies in training. The body will provide organizational, scientific, and managerial expertise, from event design to secretariat services, from registrations to participation monitoring, and up to the reporting of activities. An important role will also be assigned to the Oltrefad platform, used for the management and delivery of residential, blended, and remote learning pathways through the collaboration of the Centro Formazione Sanitaria Sicilia, the in-house consortium of the Order.
The parties to the memorandum will be able to identify shared projects, promote collaborations with public and private bodies, support scholarships, grants, and research contracts, and participate in initiatives funded by European, regional, or national funds.
Credits: ordinemedicipa.it