The European Forum on Prevention and Health Promotion in Primary Care took place in Zagreb, Croatia on March 5-6, 2025. The event was organized by EUROPREV in collaboration with the Faculty of Medicine in Rijeka and Zagreb, the family medicine organizations in Croatia - DNOOM, KOHOM, and HDOD. The central theme of the Forum was "What to Prevent When Preventing - Implementing Evidence-Based Prevention in General Practice."

The program commenced on Wednesday, March 5, 2025, with an opening ceremony featuring addresses from representatives of the local organizer, the Chair of the Forum Ass. Prof. J. Vučak, representatives of medical faculties and family medicine organizations, Prof. V. Cerovečki, EUROPREV President Prof. J.B. Brodersen, WONCA President Prof. S. Vinker, and a representative from the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Croatia, Dr. I. Portolan Pajić. All the speakers emphasized the significant importance of prevention, especially in circumstances where the demands and possibilities of diagnostics have escalated without producing real impacts on the quality or extension of patients' lives.

A film showing Croatia's natural beauties and historical landmarks was presented as part of the opening ceremony.

Following the opening ceremony, the program sessions commenced with an inspiring lecture by V. Piessens (EUROPREV delegate from Belgium) titled "Priorities in Prevention".

There was also a workshop to present various models of prevention organizations in the United Kingdom, Brazil and Spain and engage the audience by showcasing solutions from other countries. At the end of the workshop, the leader, L. Rodrigez Benito, provided an overview of potential solutions in prevention organizations considering the diverse healthcare contexts in individual countries. Delegates engaged in a workshop focusing on the practical implementation of lifestyle medicine and social prescribing in routine clinical practice, offering perspectives on incorporating these strategies into primary care.

In the scientific sessions, the program featured keynote speeches and presentations on various topics, such as national preventive programs, lung cancer screening, vaccination efforts, and the role of general practitioners in breast cancer prevention. 

In the session presenting national preventive programs such as "Hunt for the Silent Killer" presented by Academician B. Jelaković and a recently introduced preventive program aimed at individuals who have not visited their family doctor in the last two years and are over 40 years old, presented by a representative of the Croatian Institute of Public Health, T. Benjak, a lively critical discussion emerged on the necessity and their foundation in scientific research, particularly in terms of effectiveness on life extension and impact on quality of life.

We had sixteen key presentations covering a wide range of topics of interest for prevention. Croatian national preventive programs included programs related to the prevention of cardiovascular diseases, vaccinations, breast cancer prevention, and lung cancer prevention.

EUROPREV representatives delivered presentations on the role of GPs in Lifestyle and prevention, potential benefits from general health checks, a review of the ways of conducting and characteristics of general health checks across Europe, which was well complemented by a presentation on “Practices of low value or unnecessary practices in vascular prevention”. The ever-relevant topic, often overlooked, “Family medicine core values - why should we consider them when preventing”, was also covered, along with a presentation on the mental health of physicians and ways to cope with daily stress and increasing demands.