Under the leadership of the Director General of the HCL, who also serves as the administrator of the GCS, the GCS HOURAA has regained fresh momentum, embodied since November 2023 by its General Delegate. Interview with Audrey Sokolo.
The GCS HOURAA coordinates cooperation between the four university hospitals (CHU) of the Auvergne–Rhône-Alpes region (Lyon, Grenoble, Saint-Étienne, Clermont-Ferrand). What does it bring to the professionals and patients of the Lyon University Hospital?
This cooperation makes it possible to build on the complementary strengths of the four university hospitals, based on the premise that together, we are stronger. In certain fields, it also makes it possible to reach the critical mass required to undertake projects of regional—even national—scope. The most illustrative example is the Regional Health Data Hub project, which will make the four health data warehouses (EDSs) of the four CHUs interoperable. This project represents nearly ten million euros over forty months, with 50% funding from the State. It will enable the CHUs to stay one step ahead in research. Ultimately, patients will be the first to benefit.
Other CHU groupings exist in France. What inspiration do you draw from them?
When we compare ourselves with other healthcare cooperation groupings, it quickly becomes clear how valuable it is to pool knowledge. Networking the skills and experiences of each institution has shown real benefits for all CHUs, both individually and collectively.
Is this organisation also supported by public authorities?
Yes. To return to the example of health data, the public authorities—through the call for projects aimed at the development of health data warehouses (EDS)—explicitly targeted CHU networks structured through healthcare cooperation groups, because the inter‑CHU level is one of the most relevant in this area. Calls for projects aimed at CHU networks will likely become more frequent, so it is in the hospitals’ best interest to be fully engaged.
How is the GCS funded?
The budget is made up of equal contributions from the member institutions, supplemented by an operating grant from the Regional Health Agency, for a total budget of just under 200,000 euros.
What is at stake in 2024?
Consolidating our achievements and expanding the scope of cooperation! The roadmap is very ambitious, reflecting the importance placed on this collaborative effort. We have already achieved several successes, such as the project mentioned earlier. We were also selected by the Regional Health Agency (ARS) to establish the regional palliative care coordination unit, based at the Grenoble University Hospital, which will help bring together palliative care stakeholders and improve the visibility of the palliative care offer. New areas of work have also been identified: oncology, genomic medicine, artificial intelligence… These themes will shape the year 2024.
