Registrations open: NEED Symposium 2025
The NEED team is pleased to announce that registrations are now open for the NEED Symposium, taking place on Friday, 28 November 2025 at the Pacheco Center, Brussels.
The symposium will bring together policymakers, researchers, clinicians, and patient representatives to discuss how to assess and address unmet health-related needs.
👉 Register here: https://pretix.eu/kce/need2025/
The symposium will be held in English, but simultaneous interpretation into French and Dutch will be provided.
Programme:
Facilitator: Ann Van den Bruel (KCE, General Director)
09:15–09:45 Arrival & Registration
10:00–10:15 Welcome — Frank Vandenbroucke, Minister of Social Affairs and Public Health
10:15–10:30 Why is it important to assess unmet health-related needs? — Irina Cleemput (KCE, NEED Coordinator)
10:30–11:05 The NEED approach: balancing standardization and adaptation — Charline Maertens de Noordhout (KCE), Claudia Schoenborn (KCE), Caroline Obyn (KCE)
11:05–11:20 Q&A session
11:20–11:35 Coffee pause
11:35–11:50 Assessing unmet needs in paediatric populations — Julie Paradis (KCE)
11:50–12:10 Real life: unmet needs in patients with psychotic disorders — Zilke Claessens (KU Leuven)
12:10–12:30 Q&A session
12:30–13:30 Lunch break
13:30–13:45 How to use and leverage the NEED database: demo — Robby De Pauw (Sciensano)
13:45–14:05 Expanding the NEED database: value of existing data and AI — Rani Claerman (Sciensano)
14:05–14:25 Public funding for pharmaceutical R&D and unmet needs — Valérie Paris (OECD)
14:25–14:45 Q&A session
14:45–15:00 Coffee pause
15:00–15:30 Panel discussion with experts — Moredreck Chibi (WHO-Europe, public health innovation lead), Claudia Louati (European Patient Forum, head of policy), Marcus Guardian (International Horizon Scanning Initiative, general manager), Jorge Gonzalez (InnoBuyer, Ticbiomed, Director) — Moderator: Claudia Schoenborn (KCE)
15:30–15:45 Q&A discussion
15:45–16:00 Closing remarks and next steps — Irina Cleemput (KCE, NEED Coordinator)
