The third Novartis China Patient Day, an event that brought together industry partners, academic experts, and patient organization representatives to explore a new future for patient-centered healthcare, was held in Shanghai on Wednesday.

The event featured in-depth discussions on topics such as health technology assessment, innovative payment models, and cross-departmental collaborations. Participants shared their respective practices and explored how to further amplify and integrate patient voices into policy and industry innovations.

Leo Lee, president and managing director of Novartis China, highlighted the company's recent initiatives in patient support and advocacy, as well as industry innovation partnerships. He said that Novartis aims to deepen communication and build collective strength through the patient day platform.

Liu Zhengchen, founder and chairman of the Beijing-based New Sunshine Charity Foundation, emphasized the need for more professional and diverse patient voices. He expressed hope for the emergence of patient experts in various disease fields, who possess policy, medical, and research expertise.

"Cross-disciplinary collaboration is also crucial to nurture patient experts, enhance patient organization capabilities, and drive upgrades in the mindset and systems of healthcare decision-makers and providers," he said.

Wu Jing, director of the chronic disease center at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, called for a multi-faceted approach, including increased societal awareness, respect for patient voices, and strengthened resource investment and capacity building, toward the future to truly enhance chronic disease prevention and control as well as patient welfare.

During the event, the company announced the launch of a Novartis patient volunteer service project. This initiative aims to establish a systematic, long-term employee volunteer mechanism, encouraging employees to leverage their professional skills to meet patient needs and provide sustainable support to patient communities.