Projects
WONCA EUROPE has actively participated in nine EU projects during 2024-2025
- SmartCARE EU4H-2021-PJ-12
- PROTECT-EUROPE EU4H-2021-PJ-08
- PRAISE-U EU4H-2022-PJ-01
- EARLY HORIZON-HLTH-2022-DISEASE-07-
03 - POINT HORIZON-HLTH-2023-DISEASE-03-
07 - SP-EU
- EuroHeartPath HORIZON-JU-IHI-2024-07-01-
singe-stage - BCLEAR EU4H-2024-PJ-02-2
SmartCARE project (ended 31/12/2024)
The SmartCARE project aimed to develop an EU-level Cancer Survivor Smart Card to improve the quality of life and health status of cancer survivors. The mobile and web app provide new support to unmet needs related to the medical and psycho-social aspects of cancer survivorship. The project delivered an interoperable smart card solution to survivors and their families, with the patient voice in mind. The project aimed at “proof of concept”
Our part was to advise the process, help to disseminate surveys, and evaluate the product during its development. The project was led by ECO (the European Cancer Organization). From the WE side, the participants were Prof. Mehmet Ungan and Prof. Shlomo Vinker
PROTECT-EUROPE aims to implement Gender-neutral HPV vaccination with high uptake levels throughout the EU. A key challenge to achieving high vaccine uptake is overcoming vaccine hesitancy, often based on safety concerns and other misconceptions about vaccinations.
Evidence-based recommendations to improve knowledge and one-to-one communication on HPV vaccination - New Book Release developed through the PROTECT-EUROPE project, in collaboration with FISABIO and WONCA Europe. This document includes key recommendations for improving healthcare professionals’ knowledge and communication skills and ensuring more effective HPV vaccination advocacy. The selected recommendations are drawn from scientific literature compiled through PROTECT-EUROPE tasks 2.1 and 2.2, making this an evidence-based and practical guide for daily clinical practice.
Our part was to represent family medicine and primary care, leading one of the WPs, helping to disseminate surveys, and being involved in the final recommendations. The project generated an active ecosystem around Europe, aiming to implement the findings at the national level in several countries. The project was led by ECO (the European Cancer Organization). From the WE side, the participants were Prof. Mehmet Ungan, Dr. Hüsna Sarıca Çevik, and Prof. Shlomo Vinker
PRAISE-U is a multi-national-led consortium with the vision that EU member states should be able to offer high-quality clinical standards to achieve timely Prostate cancer (PCa) detection in men who can benefit from early treatment.
Our part is to represent family medicine and primary care, especially in the era that many specialist organizations are in favor of wide (almost universal) screening for prostate cancer.
The project is led by ECO (the European Cancer Organization) and the EAU (European Association of Urology). From the WE side, the participants are Prof. Thomas Frese and Prof. Josep Vilaseca.
The EARLY project mission is to provide robust data on youth mental health in the European region and design, implement, and evaluate evidence-based interventions. With 19 partners from 14 countries, the EARLY team is dedicated to addressing the critical issue of youth mental health and thereby reducing the burden of non-communicable diseases, especially mental health conditions, in youth. Through a mixed methods study, the project aims to develop a comprehensive exposure matrix, understand perceptions on youth mental health, and provide representative, robust data on youth mental health.
Our part is to represent family medicine and primary care, and we are the only family medicine organization in the project. We are actively involved in all parts and WPs of the project.
The project is led by an academic department of Public Health at the University of Applied Sciences Emden/Leer, Germany. From the WE side; the participant is Prof. Shlomo Vinker.
The POINT project seeks to develop innovative strategies for the prevention and management of non-communicable diseases that arise as complications during the post-acute phase of COVID-19. The innovative approach of the project is to create the guidelines for clinicians alongside the scientific findings. In this way, the project aims to increase the chance that the laboratory findings will be integrated into practice.
The project is led by an academic department of Biomedical Sciences at the University of Copenhagen, Denmark. The project team leaders include Prof. Shlomo Vinker, the president of WONCA Europe, as part of the group that creates the guidelines.
From 11 to 13 March 2025, WONCA Europe participated in the POINT Project Meeting #POINT health, which took place in Athens, Greece, and was attended by members of the WONCA Europe Executive Board, Professor Thomas Frese, President Elect of WONCA Europe, and Dr. Ferdinando Petrazzuoli.
From the WE side, the participants are Prof Shlomo Vinker, Dr. Ferdinando Petrazzuoli, and Prof. Thomas Frese.
The SP-EU Project is aimed at promoting and improving access to health and care services for people in vulnerable situations in Europe. The project team leaders include three WONCA Europe members, Dr. Aaron Poppleton, Professor Joyce Kenkre, and Dr. Ferdinando Petrazzuoli.
From 19 to 21 March 2025, WONCA Europe participated in the SP-EU Project 1st General Assembly meeting, which took place in Berlin, Germany, and was attended by Dr. Ferdinando Petrazzuoli, a member of the WONCA Europe (WE) Executive Board.
The consortium's goal is to transform cardiovascular care pathways across the continuum of care. It aims to elucidate how care is organized and delivered, providing deeper insights and identifying best practices for integration with the support of stakeholders, and conduct 18 pathfinder studies to optimize the personalized early detection, diagnosis, monitoring, and treatment of heart failure, atrial fibrillation, ventricular fibrillation, and coronary disease, with a particular emphasis on prevention. The project's budget is huge (26,000,000 Euro for 5 years), but our share is modest (1‰). The UNIVERSITAIR MEDISCH CENTRUM UTRECHT, Netherlands, coordinates it with more than 30 partners.
From the WE side, the participants are Prof. Shlomo Vinker and Prof. Thomas Frese.
BCLEAR project
The BCLEAR project, Bladder Cancer Literacy for All: Advancing Knowledge and Care in Europe, aims to significantly enhance health literacy related to bladder cancer. BCLEAR’s approach is to fight bladder cancer effectively by addressing critical disparities in cancer awareness, prevention, and care in specific countries. Selected pilots will be implemented in Greece, Poland, and Hungary, which are the three countries most affected in the EU. In individual use cases, adapted to the socio-cultural context of each country, BCLEAR focuses on improving the understanding of risk factors like smoking and occupational exposures while empowering patients and healthcare professionals (HCPs) with tools for shared decision-making (SDM). The project strives to foster informed decision-making, early diagnosis, and personalized treatment approaches through innovative education campaigns, decision-aid tools, and a virtual library. The goal is to deliver and validate tools and proven practices that can serve as a blueprint and example for future health literacy campaigns across the EU and beyond. The project seeks to reduce bladder cancer incidence and mortality by promoting health literacy, particularly in underrepresented regions, aligning with Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan, and advancing cancer prevention strategies across Member States.
From the WE side, the participants are Prof. Shlomo Vinker, Prof. Thomas Frese, and Prof. Josep Vilaseca.
Last modified on 14 Aug 2025.