Public Health - Researching, teaching, shaping the future -

From an idea to a creative force in the healthcare sector

Memorial symposium for

Prof. Dr. Friedrich Wilhelm Schwartz (1943-2024)

Over the past thirty years, public health has steadily developed into an essential pillar of the healthcare system in Germany, with a wide range of tasks from health promotion to management and health policy. Central to this is the systemic approach in the sense of Health in All Policies, an approach that seems more important than ever in view of issues of financing, equity and accessibility of healthcare services. Our symposium focused on how decision-makers, pioneers in public health and students of this subject assess the current situation and what strategies they are formulating for the future.

We also wanted to honour Prof. Dr Friedrich Wilhelm Schwartz, one of the pioneers of public health in Germany. He is closely associated with the reintroduction of public health in Germany, but also with the development of healthcare and health system research. We commemorated his far-reaching influence, his creative power and his inspiring personality, but above all we wanted to explore the potential of his work for future strategies in the field of public health.

The symposium took place on 27 November 2025 from 1 p.m. at Hannover Medical School.

Here you can find the speech by the President of the European Commission: Keynote address by the President at the commemorative symposium for Professor Schwartz