On 25-26 February the regular annual meeting of the Advisors of the Ministry of Health brought together healthcare professionals and decision makers to discuss ethical rules for healthcare professionals developed by the expertise and technical support of the Council of Europe and adopted by the RA Government from 17 February 2022 by 182-N decision as well as the new list of medical specialties. The meeting was jointly organized by the Council of Europe Office within the framework of the CoE Project on “Protection of Human Rights in Biomedicine II” and the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Armenia.

The annual meeting of the Advisors of the Ministry of Health of the RA is the unique opportunity to discuss the new policy directions and priorities in the field of healthcare.

The meeting was opened by the welcoming speeches given by Ms Lena Nanushyan, First Deputy Minister of Health of the Republic of Armenia and Ms Martina Schmidt, Head of the Council of Europe Office in Yerevan. The sides highlighted the successful collaboration between the Ministry of Health and the Council of Europe Office in Yerevan and attached the importance on the continuation of the cooperation to improve the protection of human rights in the field of healthcare and to strengthen the resilience of healthcare systems.

Keynote speeches and presentations were given on the ethical rules for healthcare professionals, presented by Ms Izabel Abgaryan, national consultant of the Council of Europe Office in Yerevan and the draft of the new list of medical specialties, presented by Ms Kristina Gyurjyan, the Head of Human Resources Management Department of the Ministry of Health of the RA. The presentations were followed by very active involvement of Advisors and discussion.

The annual meeting of Advisors was organised under the framework of the Council of Europe Project on “Protection of Human Rights in Biomedicine” in Armenia implemented within the Council of Europe Action Plan for Armenia 2023-2026.