Welcome to this, the first edition of Strategies for University Hospitals, and to our initial report on the state of the sector. These big and complex institutions and their twinned university research institutes face huge challenges which they share with similar institutions across Europe and beyond. Massive change in the science community and in medical treatment means these organisations need to develop institutional intent, manage cultural change and build partnering skills.

Our aim is to examine and analyse these challenges and the right response in simple, direct English. We want to build a global discussion within university hospitals and also to show the world how these institutions are changing on a macro and a micro scale.

So here you will find first our initial report into the sector (big on institutional intent and cultural change as well as a round up of the big headaches the sector faces!). Plus a couple of casestudies: one on how to transform medical staff into innovators, another on how to dramatically cut the cost of medical training. Plus an interview with the CEO of AMC, Amsterdam UMC and dean of the Medical School of the University of Amsterdam, Prof Hans Romijn, who has done more than most to transform not just a big university hospital AmsterdamUMC but also the entire Dutch university hospital sector.

I hope you find it stimulating, readable and useful. And we would love to hear from you and interview you about your strategies and challenges. I’m Max Hotopf, the editor and you can reach me on max@healthcarebusinessinternational.com. Or just phone me on 00 44 785 164 2799. We’d love to hear from you.