PREFACE It’s probably the understatement of the year when I say that 2020 has not become what we expected it to be. It became the year of care, of caring for each other, of taking care of ourselves, of applauding care professionals... In the meantime, the applause has faded, as has the pressure on our healthcare institutions. But that doesn’t mean the pandemic is gone... So, at the beginning of this annual report, allow me to thank everyone who worked in healthcare over the past year, no matter how small or how big the contribution was and is, for the commitment, the courage to guide us through this. 2020 was also the year to adapt, to be flexible within the circumstances that we could not change. We had to go through it together and especially look at what was possible. As chairman, I am therefore proud to look back on how we as BlueHealth Innovation Center were able to respond quickly to the situation with things like the Online Essentials or digital innovation days. It wasn’t perfect, and not always easy, but we went for it, to accomplish our mission online as well. 2020 was also clearly the year of the digital breakthrough in healthcare, not because we could, but because we had to. Many new possibilities were created, partly by the government, but mainly by the people themselves. We saw an increase of more than 60% in the number of people who contacted us to get guidance in converting their idea into a digital enterprise. And a big part of that were people from the caresector, who saw how things could be done differently, how it could be made better. Because that is what we want to go for, so that all this has not been for nothing, but the start of a bright digital future for our entire healthcare sector. We wish you lots of pleasure reading this report! With grateful greetings, Wim Dries Chairman of the Board of Directors BHIC vzw 02
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