Recently, in European and global health policies, the concept of One Health has gained significant ground — an approach that integrates human, animal, and environmental health into a systemic vision.
Find out more! Keep reading.
Table of contents
What is meant by One Health?
The One Health approach recognizes the interconnection between the health of people, animals, and ecosystems. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the One Health model aims to optimize the relationship between these three actors, viewing this connection as inseparable.
Similarly, the Italian National Institute of Health (ISS) believes that phenomena such as pandemics, famines, natural disasters, and climate change should no longer be addressed separately. In practice, the One Health approach implies that:
- doctors, veterinarians, environmentalists, and data scientists work together;
- health and environmental policies coexist;
- monitoring and prevention, for both people and animals, are carried out through digital technologies.
And this is where e-health and mobile health come into play — enabling better prevention and management of health emergencies, but we’ll explore these concepts further ahead.
When did the One Health concept originate?
The One Health concept emerged in the early 19th century, when scholars such as Rudolf Virchow highlighted the link between human, animal, and environmental health. However, the systemic approach only took shape in the 1960s and gained wider adoption from 2000 onward — particularly following the SARS epidemic of 2003 and the Manhattan Principles of 2004.
Today, the model is adopted globally by international organizations such as WHO, FAO, EFSA, and within the European Union it is used to address challenges such as:
- antimicrobial resistance;
- zoonotic diseases (over 60% of infectious diseases originate in animals);
- climate change.
One Health, e-health, and mobile health: an integrated ecosystem
Digital transformation, a core focus of our company cluster (JO Group), is fully aligned with the One Health approach. Concrete examples include:
- telemedicine platforms for remote monitoring;
- apps for epidemiological tracking;
- systems for environmental data collection and analysis.
These technologies help reduce health risks and improve the resilience of complex systems, such as modern smart cities.
PNRR: the role of the state in developing the One Health model
In Italy, the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR) embrace the One Health system. Among the most relevant initiatives:
1. Home care for the elderly
By 2027, the government’s goal is to reach at least 842,000 people aged 65 and over to assist them at home, also using telemedicine.
2. Community health centers
PNRR funding aims to create over 1,000 Community Health Centers, introducing a new multidisciplinary model in which various professionals collaborate to provide comprehensive patient care.
European projects
The One Health paradigm is now one of the key drivers in EU project development: programs such as Horizon Europe and Erasmus+ aim to support the most vulnerable communities through projects that encompass both digital and environmental health.
At IPPOCRATE AS, this is exactly what we do — developing projects that make a real difference. We are a software house producing e-health, m-health, and healthcare app solutions. Through our IPPO Engineering division, we also work on environmental technologies and eco-sustainability, fully embracing a One Health perspective.
If you are looking to develop a project on these topics and need a partner, you’ve found one. Contact us now by calling our office at +390954683879 or filling out the contact form below — we’ll get back to you as soon as possible.
We are open to building partnerships and writing the project with you, and we guarantee full reliability and success-oriented support. Get in touch today.