Five Things Healthgrid 2009 is All About

Here is my take on the ongoing HealthGrid 2009 conference in Berlin. Reader will note that these points are at a higher level abstraction and I do not attempt to really go into a lot of details which are highly dynamic in nature anyways. These are the things I feel HealthGrid is all about and where it is going to be in the future. A bit of a serious talk I am afraid .. :-)

1. Grids: A lot has been already said about Grids. One point that I would attempt to make here is that Grids are simply means to something bigger and not the ends in itself. A simple notion that sometimes I feels is getting lost in the chaos of making them really useful.
   
   
2. Healthcare: Many medical science applications are being described. Some really fantastic end-user tools and projects are being showcased. A real end that everybody wants to or should be looking to achieve. I have a feeling that small experiments are lacking in the midst of 'large' and 'huge' projects. I think more small scale experiments should be attracted to Grids if it has to be complete success.
   
   
3. Rise of AsiaGrid: Not anymore is this an EU only event. This is what I usally feel in the Grid events hosted anywhere in the EU. One could clearly see around the presence of AsiaGrid. In the conference pamphlets, souvenirs and posters. This is a good thing. Grid is crossing stubborn boundaries and new projects are emerging up in Asia. Developing world needs cheap healthcare more than any other, isnt it?
   
   
4. Society: I am a bit confused about the role of society as the ultimate consumer of HealthGrids. Would the 'Health' and the 'Grid' benefit if we have more awareness about grid from the society? What if we stick posters around the streets making people aware of the power of the grid? What if we have a 30 second prime time slot on national television channels? Just a wild idea. May be we are not yet ready for that. Or may be it is good and the expectation of society will raise the efforts from science and may be industry too. Wild!
   
   
5. Berlin: Wow. This city is big. Big streets, big stations, big buildings, big monuments. Bigger than any I have seen in Europe.