14.04.2026, the SANITAS project info day took place at the GO! Center, dedicated to strengthening cross-border cooperation in the healthcare sector between Italy and Slovenia. The project addresses shared challenges related to climate change adaptation and improving emergency response capacity through enhanced cooperation between the two countries. Key activities include upgrading equipment, developing competencies, and improving the integration of healthcare and emergency teams on both sides of the border.
The event represented an important opportunity to directly engage the population of the cross-border area and to collect experiences, testimonies, and proposals regarding access to healthcare services. The participatory meeting was primarily aimed at people who live, work, or frequently cross the border between the two countries.
The information collected will serve as a fundamental basis for the development of a cross-border protocol in primary healthcare, which will be developed by EZTS GO together with the project partners.
During the event, several concrete challenges were highlighted, including issues related to emergency management, access to cross-border healthcare services, administrative barriers, and continuity of care.
The main obstacles identified during the discussion:
1. Emergency medical services
- emergency services cannot cross the border
- delays in response despite the presence of closer teams across the border
2. Sick leave and medical documentation
- need to physically submit certificates (e.g. within 48 hours to INPS)
- difficulties in accessing documentation for cross-border workers
- differences between systems (e.g. in Slovenia sick leave can be recognised retroactively)
3. Continuity of care after treatment
- lack of home care services across the border after treatment in Slovenia
- the same issue applies to new mothers after childbirth
4. Access to services and reimbursements
- uncertainties regarding referrals to specialists in another country
- short deadlines for reimbursement of healthcare costs (e.g. ZZZS)
5. Cross-border workers
- loss of general practitioner in case of working and residing across the border
- issues related to double taxation
6. Documents and rights
- health insurance card for Slovenian citizens in Italy only available in paper form (valid for one year)
- non-harmonised systems and uncertainty in accessing rights
7. Education and insurance
- uncertainties regarding health insurance for students studying across the border
8. Language barriers
- communication difficulties between patients and healthcare staff
- proposal to use real-time translation tools
The identification of these challenges represents a key step towards developing solutions that better respond to the real needs of the cross-border population.
The objective is to ensure more coordinated, faster, and more effective healthcare provision in the cross-border area, particularly in the event of emergencies and natural disasters.
The SANITAS project is co-funded by the European Union under the Interreg VI-A Italy–Slovenia 2021–2027 Programme.
