4th AmCham Healthcare Conference “The Power of Timely Action: Healthcare System that Delivers”

Date: November 5th, 2025

The American Chamber of Commerce in North Macedonia (AmCham) held its Fourth Annual Healthcare Conference, under the motto “The Power of Timely Action: Healthcare System that Delivers”, which this year was dedicated to the need for concrete and timely steps for more efficient and prepared healthcare.

“From the very beginning, our goal was to create a platform for continuous dialogue between institutions, industry, academia and patients. Today, after four years, it is time for that dialogue to be translated into results. Timely action is the key – because it is precisely time that we most often lose in procedures and delays, and it is precisely timely reaction that makes the difference between success and stagnation, trust and distrust in the system,” said Jelena Arsovska, Executive Director of AmCham North Macedonia, emphasizing that this year the theme of the conference is a call for concrete steps and measurable changes in healthcare.

The keynote address was given by Dr. Prakash Jayakumar from the University of Texas (USA), who spoke about the innovations and technologies that will shape healthcare in the next decade. Noting that patients have changed, but not healthcare systems, he indicated that the future of healthcare will depend on the ability of institutions to adapt to the new reality. According to him, digitalization and technology alone will not fix the healthcare system, but real transformation must come from a combination of new leadership mindsets, clearly established accountability and cooperation between different sectors.

At the panel discussion “When the System Struggles – Turning Challenges into Change”, Minister of Health Azir Aliu, Director of the Health Insurance Fund Sasho Klekovski, together with Aleksandra Ivanovska from the pharmaceutical company ROCHE and Ana Marjanović from the patient organization HEMA-ONKO, discussed ways to transform the system from a reactive to a proactive management model. They stressed that the healthcare system faces real challenges that require much more work and determination, emphasizing that the next period must be focused on strengthened accountability at all levels, better efficiency and delivered results – in order for the system to become more agile and more service-oriented towards citizens.

The next two panels deepened the discussion on efficiency and modern governance in healthcare, emphasizing access to healthcare services, medicines and data. The panelists indicated that improving coordination, decentralization and digital connectivity of the system are necessary steps to reduce gaps in access and decision-making. In the spirit of the key message of the conference, it was emphasized that timely action and strategic action are the basis for a system that does not just react to problems, but acts preventively and truly delivers results for patients.

This year, the conference also opened the topic of the role of the media and the public in improving the healthcare system, with an emphasis on the need for transparency, access to information and building trust between institutions, media professionals and citizens.

In the final part of the conference, the panel “Recommendations for improvement in the coming year” was held, the aim of which was to encourage concrete commitments and measurable steps from all stakeholders in the healthcare system. As a preparatory activity for this panel, AmCham organized an interactive workshop in the “World Café” format, where representatives from institutions, academia, industry and international organizations worked in groups to identify priority measures and areas for action. The results of this workshop were presented and discussed at the conference, as a basis for defining a common path for the next phase of reforms.

With this conference, AmCham once again confirmed its role as a platform that fosters collaboration, consensus, and concrete action, uniting institutions, the business community, and experts around a common goal – a healthcare system that learns, adapts and delivers results for citizens.