© 2024 EPFL/Adrien Buttier- CC-BY-SA 4.0 Horizon Santé, une journée tout public comme l'étaient les journées de l'IA.
EPFL, the University of Lausanne (UNIL), Lausanne University Hospital (CHUV) and Unisanté will team up on 28 and 29 November for Horizon Santé 2025 - a two-day event open to the public where experts will discuss key breakthroughs in the field of healthcare along with the societal issues shaping its future.
Healthcare is not a subject to be taken lightly. It affects all of us, whether we're young or old, active or sedentary. Today, scientists are making important breakthroughs that improve our understanding of many diseases and open up bold new avenues of research, to the point of enabling paralyzed people to walk again. And personalized medicine is no longer a dream but a growing reality.
Artificial intelligence has filtered into just about every aspect of healthcare. Researchers now use powerful algorithms to crunch through huge datasets in just a few seconds, hone doctors' diagnostic capabilities, improve the accuracy of medical imaging, speed drug development and design novel therapeutic approaches. And while AI helps caregivers make better-informed decisions, it also brings with it new ethical considerations.
Our world is changing and we must adapt, seek to understand the ramifications and above all safeguard what matters. How should we handle the microplastic that's invading our lakes and food supply, or the growing prevalence of of antibiotic-resistant bacteria? And what can we do to help smartphone-addicted teenagers, the elderly suffering from memory loss and people struggling with substance abuse?
These questions and more will be addressed at Horizon Santé 2025, which will be held on Friday, November 28, and Saturday, November 29. Scientists and doctors from four of the leading healthcare-research institutes in French-speaking Switzerland will explain recent developments in layman's terms. On Friday, a series of expert talks will be given at UNIL, while on Saturday a range of events - including information stands, presentations, science cafés and fun workshops for children - will be held at EPFL's Lausanne campus. On both days, attendees will get key insights from researchers and medical professionals as well as testimonials from the patients themselves.
Exploring today's pressing issues
The event will kick off at the UNIL Amphimax on Friday with talks by experts from all four entities: Stéphanie Lacour, EPFL's Vice President for Support to Strategic Initiatives; Claire Charmet, the director of CHUV; Karim Boubaker, the director of Unisanté; and Renaud Du Pasquier, the dean of the UNIL Faculty of Biology and Medicine. The evening will continue with a packed program of panel discussions, videos, talks and Q&A sessions with the public.
A number of pressing issues will be explored throughout the event. One is AI, which is powering advances in clinical research and the fight against cancer. Mary-Anne Hartley, the head of EPFL's Laboratory for Intelligent Global Health and Humanitarian Response Technologies, will present Meditron, an AI program designed to guide clinical decision-making. Another highlight will be a presentation by Florian Breider, the head of EPFL's Central Environmental Laboratory, about the pharmaceutical residue found in our lakes and rivers and how environmental factors affect our health more broadly.
© 2024 EPFL/Adrien Buttier- CC-BY-SA 4.0
On Saturday, the event will move to EPFL's Rolex Learning Center,where participants will learn more about and experiment with the innovations that are transforming healthcare. Activities will include presentations for the general public, science cafés where participants can speak directly with researchers, educational workshops combining science, technology and the patient experience, and a series of interactive stands. For instance, EPFL's Didier Trono will outline the future of personalized medicine. And Camille Goemans, also from EPFL, will describe recent scientific discoveries and the societal issues that are helping guide advances in healthcare, drawing on her research into how antibiotics and other drugs are affecting the diversity of the human microbiome.
Stress tests and an escape game
Participants will be able to visit information stands in the Rolex Learning Center to get an overview of the latest healthcare innovations: novel addiction-prevention approaches, the use of animals in the healing process, next-generation exoskeletons, AI-assisted prostheses and implants, and neurotechnological devices to help restore sensory and motor function (such as to enable patients to feel heat with an artificial hand or control a robotic third arm). At the same time, the EPFL Library will display a collection of documents on the many facets of healthcare and what lies ahead.
EPFL/Alain Herzog - CC-BY-SA 4.0
Horizon Santé 2025 promises an enlightening experience for one and all, with science workshops designed for visitors as young as eight years old. In an escapegame inspired by medical research, teams must help a doctor diagnose an illness by analyzing brain cells using medical equipment and imaging techniques. MyKrobs and Bacttle are two games that will take participants on an adventure in the world of microorganisms. And a heart coherence workshop will give visitors a chance to try out different stress-management exercises and see how they benefit both mind and body.
Learn more and sign up for the event at www.horizon-sante.ch
