On 29–30 June, an international pilot training-of-trainers workshop focused on protecting public health policymaking from undue commercial influence took place in Warsaw.
The high-level event was organised as part of JA PreventNCD in collaboration with the WHO Country Office in Poland and the WHO Regional Office for Europe.
Held at the National Institute of Public Health NIH – National Research Institute (NIZP PZH – PIB), the training brought together representatives from public administration, academia and public health institutions. Participants included representatives of the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Finance, the Chief Sanitary Inspectorate and the National Centre for Prevention of Addictions.
Associate Professor Katarzyna Brukało of the Medical University of Silesia contributed to the organisation of the training and participated in the event as a speaker.
Photo from the workshop. Pictured on the left is Associate Professor Katarzyna Brukało.
The workshop aimed to strengthen participants’ capacity to develop transparent, evidence-informed public health policies and protect decision-making processes from conflicts of interest and undue commercial influence.
Participants explored several key topics, including:
- commercial determinants of health and their effects on population health;
- strategies used by commercial actors to influence public policy;
- the role of science and scientific evidence in public health decision-making;
- and the development of transparent and accountable governance frameworks, including measures to prevent and manage conflicts of interest.
The workshop had a strong practical focus. Participants analysed good practices, exchanged experiences, explored available tools and discussed how these approaches could be applied in their institutions and areas of work.
According to the organisers, the pilot training was the first initiative of its kind implemented in the WHO European Region. It marked an important step towards strengthening the capacity of public institutions to address commercial determinants of health, supporting more effective prevention of noncommunicable diseases and the development of stronger, more transparent public health policies.