GRACE and EuroHeartPath projects join forces at ESC Congress 2026
GRACE and EuroHeartPath projects, both funded by the Innovative Health Initiative (IHI), joined forces at ESC Congress 2026, held in Munich from 28 to 31 August, marking their first joint collaboration to explore how innovation can contribute to transforming cardiovascular care pathways across Europe.
Organised by the European Society of Cardiology (ESC), ESC Congress is the world’s largest cardiovascular congress, bringing together healthcare professionals and researchers from across the globe to share the latest scientific advances, clinical evidence and developments in cardiovascular medicine. The 2026 edition welcomed 33,800 healthcare professionals from 170 countries, making it the largest ESC Congress to date.
Thanks to an invitation from the European Society of Cardiology, which plays a key role in the communication and dissemination activities of EuroHeartPath, both projects had the opportunity to participate in the ESC TV Connect session “Innovation as an Enabler in the Transformation of Cardiovascular Care Pathways”, held on 29 August.
Two flagship projects transforming cardiovascular care
As two major IHI-funded initiatives working to advance cardiovascular healthcare in Europe, GRACE and EuroHeartPath share a common ambition: translating innovation into more effective, integrated and patient-centred care.
While addressing different aspects of cardiovascular care, both projects bring complementary approaches to this shared challenge.
GRACE focuses on developing and implementing technology-enabled care pathways, including innovative approaches to cardio-oncology that aim to improve care coordination and support more personalised patient management.
EuroHeartPath, meanwhile, seeks to optimise cardiovascular care pathways by identifying best practices, reducing variations in care and facilitating the integration of innovative technologies and approaches across European healthcare systems.
By bringing these perspectives together, the session offered an opportunity to explore how different innovation-driven initiatives can contribute to improving cardiovascular care, while highlighting the value of collaboration and knowledge sharing between European projects.
Bringing together clinical expertise, innovation and the IHI perspective
The discussion was moderated by Prof. Pim van der Harst, with contributions from Prof. Teresa López Fernández (Hospital Universitario La Paz), Marcos Gallego Llorente (Vintura) and Dr. Klelia Salpea (Innovative Health Initiative).
Representing GRACE, Prof. Teresa López Fernández shared her clinical expertise and insights into the project’s cardio-oncology care use case, highlighting how innovative, technology-enabled approaches can contribute to improving the coordination and delivery of care for patients requiring both oncological and cardiovascular management.
From the EuroHeartPath perspective, Marcos Gallego Llorente contributed insights into the transformation and optimisation of cardiovascular care pathways, illustrating how innovation and the exchange of best practices can support improvements across different healthcare settings.
The session also benefited from the participation of Dr. Klelia Salpea, Project Officer at the Innovative Health Initiative for both GRACE and EuroHeartPath. Her contribution reinforced the importance of fostering synergies between IHI-funded projects, encouraging knowledge sharing and collaboration, and maximising the collective impact of European healthcare innovation initiatives.
Beyond the exchange of insights during ESC Congress 2026, this joint participation represented an important first step in strengthening collaboration between GRACE and EuroHeartPath, connecting different perspectives, approaches and areas of expertise can contribute to accelerating the transformation of healthcare.
Looking ahead, GRACE and EuroHeartPath aim to continue building on this initial exchange, identifying new opportunities for collaboration, knowledge sharing and joint activities to further advance innovative, integrated and patient-centred cardiovascular care across Europe.
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