Global Mental Health Summit: facilitating the works of a high-level institutional meeting in a significant, historic location in Rome.

The fourth edition of the Global Mental Health Summit (GMHS) was held in Rome at one of the oldest hospitals in Europe. How can locations amplify the messages and contents of an event? What did transforming an old hospital ward into a modern and functional congress centre entail? Read the newest Impact Story.

The fourth edition of the Global Mental Health Summit (GMHS) was successfully held from 13-14 October 2022, with more than 400 participants and 50 online delegates representing 52 accredited countries. The Italian Ministry of Health, in collaboration with the World Health Organization and the Italian National Institute of Health, organized the event, which was held in Santo Spirito in Sassia, one of the oldest hospitals in Europe. AIM Group International was the full PCO in charge of the conference organisation.

How can locations amplify the messages and contents of an event? By carefully selecting a venue with symbolic significance and historical relevance to the event theme, event planners can create a deeper connection between the delegates and the host destination. This can inspire participants, personalize projects, and create truly memorable events. That’s what happened in this case, choosing the ancient Santo Spirito in Sassia Hospital as the venue for the Ministerial Summit.

This involved transforming a former ward of the historic hospital into a state-of-the-art meeting congress center, upgrading the Wi-Fi and wiring the entire location with ad hoc lines to boost electricity, guarantee cybersecurity, and avoid overloading the hospital infrastructure.A safety and security plan and checklist for the location were drawn up in collaboration with the traffic police, Police Headquarters, and the Ministry of the Interior, and defined arrival routes were put in place for guests, with the rest of the area closed to traffic for safety reasons and manned by the police.

The opening session included speeches from the Italian Minister of Health Roberto Speranza, Ukrainian first lady Olena Zelenska, connected by video-link, and the Director General of the World Health Organisation, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, and Stella Kyriakides, EU Commissioner for Health, who both sent recorded video messages.

The event met all expectations, with the ceremonial protocol, timing, location, participant flow, technological infrastructure, everything worked seamlessly to support the mission of the conference, and the connection with a beautiful, historic place of care and healing inspired the delegates and enriched their memories.

Read the full Impact Story here

Global Mental Health Summit (GMHS) 2022