As the World Health Organisation (WHO) Regional Office for Europe hosted its first open symposium on Modelling and Optimising the Health and Care Workforce, Global BioImaging (GBI) joined a diverse group of professionals exploring bold, collaborative responses to the global health workforce crisis.

The event didn’t just spotlight challenges—it invited everyone to co-create solutions. Can we rethink healthcare systems by placing people, not just metrics, at the centre? How might global imaging professionals play a bigger role in equitable access, career pathways, and digital transformation?

For GBI, the symposium opened space to explore exactly that. Could biomedical imaging facilities support national healthcare systems more directly? What if we trained health professionals—including midwives and frontline workers—in imaging skills using portable technologies, open software/hardware and global community know-how?

Discussions at the symposium echoed key values shared by both the WHO and GBI: the importance of trust before transformation, the urgent need to diversify and support the workforce, and the call to redefine value—not just in financial terms, but in improved outcomes and long-term equity.

New questions emerged: How can GBI's training programs better align with global health policy goals? What role might imaging communities play in inspiring the next generation of healthcare professionals? Can partnerships across continents truly democratize access to imaging technologies?

As GBI continues to build bridges between imaging and health policy, one question remains at the heart of it all:

What might be possible if we empowered every region with the imaging tools, training, and trust needed to reimagine healthcare from the inside out?