Martine Bellanger, director of the MPH EHESP, congratulated Team PHocus for their choice of theme.
"The topic of Politics and Health is usually not very well covered, or only indirectly," she said. "So I'm very happy that the students chose such an important and original topic to cover."
PHocus 2014 was honored to invite as participants Peter Abrahamson (University of Copenhagen), Clare Bambra (University of Durham), Morten Wahrendorf (University of Düsseldorf), Claire Bellia (Malta Council for Science and Technology), and Thomas C. Ricketts (UNC Chapel Hill). Subjects ranged from health policy to labor market policy, from issues in welfare to the tensions between research and politics. Questions from a full audience in the Paris Center’s Grande Salle led to stimulating discussions and the event concluded with a synthesis by Team PHocus.
"I'm really enjoying the conference and I'm grateful for the speakers," one MPH student attendee said. Her friend added, "The M1's (first-year MPH students) have diverse backgrounds, so we're already starting to discuss these issues further, comparing the EU situation discussed by the speakers to our own cultures."
The ambiance was friendly. One MPH student offered to tickle the ivories in the Grande Salle during a coffee break. Speakers expressed their admiration for each other's work and for the conference program.