The above-mentioned scenario highlights what connection is all about: the art of building bridges between patient and professional, across disciplines, and even between humans, animals, and the environment. Whether it concerns zoonoses, antibiotic resistance, or climate-related infections, collaboration determines how well prepared we are.
One Health: collaboration under pressure
A broad view of health quickly leads to Planetary Health: from waste streams and climate to infectious diseases. Within this expansive landscape, One Health makes the interconnection between humans, animals, and the environment tangible. It sounds logical, but in practice, it often clashes with differing languages and perspectives. Even a simple term like 'urban green space' means something different to a designer, policymaker, or data scientist.
“Without a shared language, action stalls. And especially in the case of infectious diseases and antibiotic resistance, time is often critical,” explains researcher Nienke Beerlage-De Jong. She masters the craft of connection like no other: “I want to build bridges between professionals and patients, across disciplines, and literally across borders—so decisions improve and care remains future-proof.”
Friction is part of the process—and drives progress
Take zoonoses: infections that jump from animals to humans. No single party has exclusive authority. During an outbreak, ministries, GPs, veterinarians, public health services, microbiologists, and the general public come together—all with their own agendas and packed schedules. “Zoonoses are not the core business for most of them,” says Beerlage-De Jong. Connection then means: bringing the right people to the table, raising awareness, and designing the process so that friction doesn’t block progress but yields insights. Friction can clarify where priorities clash and how collaboration can still be achieved.
Antibiotics: more than clinical values
Zoonoses become even more challenging when antibiotic resistance is involved. What if bacteria that jump from animals to humans no longer respond to our medications? Research shows that prescribing antibiotics is not solely about clinical values but also about context and behaviour. In a vignette study by Beerlage-De Jong involving GPs, it became clear that factors such as time pressure, language barriers, or the (perceived) expectations of the patient do indeed play a role. The next step: developing communication strategies that maintain patient satisfaction while reducing unnecessary prescriptions. “Because the words you choose make the difference between an unnecessary prescription and a satisfied patient.”
Learning to collaborate
The next generation of healthcare professionals learns this from the outset. In the University of Twente’s Health Sciences programme, at our Technical Medical (TechMed) Centre, Beerlage-De Jong’s students practise not only theory but also cross-boundary collaboration. “To me, collaboration is the real discipline. Through serious games students discover how quickly professionals revert to familiar patterns and how crucial it is to understand each other’s language and role. This way, they learn during their studies that complex problems never fit within a single discipline.”
In a serious game, players make decisions involving dilemmas that have no clear right or wrong answers, often with affective components. Confronting, but above all, it provides valuable insights and learning experiences.
Technology as a bridge
Technology is no panacea, but it can be a valuable tool—for instance, in connecting disciplines and fostering awareness and mutual understanding. One example is the eZoon game, developed by Beerlage-De Jong in collaboration with stakeholders and software developer 8D. “In this serious game, players experience an outbreak of avian influenza. They make decisions involving dilemmas that have no clear right or wrong answers, often with affective components. Players can choose independently or seek advice from parties such as farmers or the NWA. The game demonstrates the value of collaboration, the choices made, and whose advice is sought. Are these often like-minded individuals, for example? And what are the effects on the course of the outbreak and societal unrest? This can be confronting, but above all, it provides valuable insights and learning experiences.”
Invitation: take a seat at the table
The central message is clear: health requires more than medicine alone. It involves behaviour, communication, and collaboration. That’s why Beerlage-De Jong fosters closer ties between practice and policy, ensuring research swiftly translates into tools for consultations, educational materials, and digital solutions. Looking ahead, she focuses on the impact of climate change on infections and on citizen science and social media as promising avenues for detection. Her dream for the future: a national monitoring system that aggregates lab data from multiple laboratories and visualises it in a way professionals can immediately understand and translate into concrete actions. “European developments around health data, such as the European Health Data Space, can accelerate this—provided they are translated into usable tools in practice.” The invitation remains as simple as it is urgent: “Take a seat at the table. Because connection is not a side issue—it is a profession.”
