SPEARHEAD and beyond: Sustaining the fight against antimicrobial resistance

About the event

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) stands among the most urgent global health threats of our time. In recognition of AMR Week 2025, SPEARHEAD and beyond will convene leading voices from science, policy, industry, and academia to explore innovative strategies and long-term solutions to tackle this pressing issue.

Marking the culmination of a four-year journey of groundbreaking research and cross-sector collaboration, this final event will showcase the key results and lessons learned from the SPEARHEAD project.

Participants can expect a rich, high-level program, including:

  • Presentations from global AMR leaders offering insights into policy trends, scientific advances, and holistic approaches to AMR.
  • Panel discussions that examine the multifaceted impact of AMR—clinical, financial, public health, and societal.
  • Interactive workshops focusing on critical AMR challenges such as rapid diagnostics, machine learning applications, community engagement, and the economics of sustainable solutions.
  • A forward-looking discussion, addressing how to sustain momentum and continue driving innovation in the fight against AMR beyond the lifetime of the SPEARHEAD project.
  • Poster presentations by PhD students and networking opportunities throughout the day to foster exchange and collaboration.

This event promises to be a dynamic platform for dialogue, learning, and collective action in the global response to antimicrobial resistance.

Agenda

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Date:

Time (CET) Local time zone is Content Speaker
09:00-09:30

Morning coffee

09:30-09:40

Welcome words

09:40-09:45

Voice of Patients

09:45-10:10

Keynote: Reducing the 80% - a community healthcare perspective on AMR

10:10-10:35

Keynote: Current and future policies in AMR

10:35-10:45

Coffee break

10:45-11:25

Panel: Impact of AMR and how to prepare for the future - Perspectives from policy makers, clinicians, patients and industry
Moderated by Damien Somé

11:25-11:30

Video GARDP: #ThisisBig

11:30-12:10

SPEARHEAD project: Summary and Results

12:10-12:15

Morning reflections & afternoon highlights

12:15-13:15

Lunch

13:15-14:45

Workshops: SPEARHEAD and Beyond

  • Real-time monitoring for AMR - How can we optimize inappropriate antibiotic use?
  • Machine Learning for Optimised Antibiotic Use - How can we target antibiotics better?
  • Nanomotion for antibiotic susceptibility prediction - How to reduce the time to results? 
  • Engaging community through innovative design methods - How can communities be engaged to increase awareness of AMR and antibiotic consumption through design methods?
  • Economic impact of technological solutions to AMR - What are the important components and prerequisites for an economic evaluation of an AMR technology?
14:45-14:55

Coffee break

14:55-15:20

Workshop summaries & key takeaways

15:20-15:45

Keynote: Countering antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in a changing global health landscape - A smart, cost-effective approach

15:45-16:00

Closing remarks

16:00-18:00

Networking & Apéro

Further Information

Speakers

Christoph Nabholz, CEO, RiskInsight Consulting GmbH
Saara Malkamäki, Programme Manager at the Innovation Office of the University of Basel
Prof. Gail Hayward, Associate Professor of Primary Care, University of Oxford Nuffield Dept of Primary Care Health Sciences
Barbara Schedler Fischer, Ambassador for Global Health and Head of the International Affairs Division at the Swiss Federal Office of Public Health
Dr. Alex Sturm, Chief Scientific Officer of the Swiss Medtech company Resistell
Simon Gottwalt, Project Leader at Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH)
Dr. Serena Cangiano, Senior Researcher at the Design Institute
Prof. Christoph Meier, Chief pharmacist at the Hospital Pharmacy, University Hospital Basel, and Professor for Clinical Pharmacy and Epidemiology at the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences at Basel University, Switzerland
Julia Bielicki, Consultant in Paediatric Infectious Diseases and Infection Prevention and Control at the University of Basel Children’s Hospital, and heads the hospital’s Paediatric Research Centre
Prof. Matthias Schwenkglenks, Head of the Health Economics Facility and Head of Research of the Institute of Pharmaceutical Medicine (ECPM), at the Department of Public Health of the Medical Faculty, University of Basel
Peter Beyer, Deputy Executive Director at Global Antibiotic R&D Partnership (GARDP)

Disclaimer

The event may be photographed, videotaped, filmed and /or digitally recorded. You consent to Swiss Re's use, free of charge, of any memorialization of the event in which you may appear for any Swiss Re publication or promotional purpose.

Spearhead

Innovating against AMR

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