Our content
Amsterdam UMC is shaping the healthcare of the future. We’re developing high-quality, innovative care for and with patients suffering from complex or rare illnesses. We’re also working to improve the health of people and the planet to help prevent disease and reduce health disparities. Our four core tasks – research, education & training, patient care and valorization – connect knowledge and commitment to make a difference for patients and society.
We’re fostering stronger synergy between our core tasks to achieve high-quality and innovative care
EXCELLING TOGETHER
The Dutch UMCs have an international reputation for excellence in medical research. With Amsterdam UMC now among the top 3 medical research institutions in Europe, we feel a strong responsibility to improve our understanding of – and find new treatments for – the most complex and rare diseases. In all our core tasks, we’re constantly developing new knowledge, insights and solutions together with our partners and patients.
NEW INSIGHTS
We explore innovative treatments and apply our findings in practice. We also treat patients who can’t receive care elsewhere, serving as a last resort. Future professionals benefit from these latest insights.
CHOOSING QUALITY
We make deliberate choices when it comes to our patient care by asking ourselves whether our academic setting actually adds value, or if someone would be just as well served by one of our partners. To bridge the gap between care and patients, we work closely with other hospitals, specialist networks and patients themselves. By streamlining our portfolio, we can continue to provide high-quality care to patients with complex and rare diseases and excel in areas where we can make a real difference.
FOR SOCIETY
We want our research to have a positive social impact. That’s why we listen to what society and patients ask of us. We conduct pioneering research and valorize new knowledge by sharing it with the outside world and applying it in our patient care and education. In doing so, we optimize our effectiveness in contributing to health for all and accessible healthcare.
INNOVATIVE
We never stop innovating, using new technological developments such as AI to ensure high-quality research and tertiary referral care. With its state-of-the-art research facilities and infrastructure, Amsterdam UMC is an ideal incubator for these innovations. Together with VU Amsterdam, the University of Amsterdam and other key partners, we’re exploring new ways to apply AI and other technologies in healthcare.
We’re actively contributing to a sustainable and healthy future
HEALTHY PEOPLE LIVING ON A HEALTHY PLANET
Amsterdam UMC is doing its part to address two major challenges: access to healthcare and new health issues arising from climate change. To tackle these problems, we’re applying insights from research on health promotion and sustainability in all of our core tasks.
PATIENTS FIRST
We tailor our care to the needs of our patients, who – often together with their loved ones – are involved in the decisions that are made about their treatment (‘Appropriate Care’). By properly informing patients and asking them about their wishes, doctors and patients are able to arrive at the best decisions together (‘Deciding Together’).
REDUCING THE DEMAND FOR CARE
To prevent health problems, we collect knowledge about prevention, which we then apply in practice and use to train future health professionals. Through our research, we also gain a better understanding of which treatments produce the best health outcomes. This is how we help reduce the demand for care and contribute to a healthier society.
REDUCING HEALTH DISPARITIES
Together with our two affiliated universities, we’re investigating how to reduce health disparities – between Amsterdam residents, but also regionally, nationally and internationally. We translate scientific insights into policy and education that helps enhance the health of current and future generations.
CIRCULAR
Amsterdam UMC recognizes the urgent need for climate action. That’s why we’re drastically reducing our use of primary raw materials, greening our purchasing process and minimizing waste through reuse and recycling. All of our organizational units are committed to achieving circular operations. To further reduce our footprint, we’re making a consistent effort to limit our carbon emissions and modifying our buildings where possible.
SUSTAINABLE CARE
We do groundbreaking research on sustainable care. By immediately integrating new insights into our patient care, we’re able to achieve circularity and reduce our environmental impact. We also focus on the interplay between health, care, the environment and climate change, and we prepare our students to address these challenges.
SUSTAINABLE AND HEALTHY CHOICES
Because we care about the health of people and the planet, we also feel a responsibility to help our colleagues make sustainable and healthy choices.
EXAMPLE
This is how we’re delivering
high-quality and innovative care:
Amsterdam Skills Center
Surgeons and other medical professionals from around the world have been coming to the Amsterdam Skills Center (ASC) to hone their surgical techniques since 2019. The ASC is open 24/7, has 12 operating rooms and uses simulators, virtual reality technology and artificial intelligence, allowing doctors to improve their skills without operating on actual patients. “This streamlines the training process for both new and experienced surgeons,” explains ASC founder and surgeon Jaap Bonjer. “Our facilities also allow you to practice challenging situations together with your entire team. So this isn’t just a training center for surgeons, but also for anesthesiologists, surgical assistants, pulmonologists and cardiologists.”
EXAMPLE
This is how we’re working on
patient-centered care and prevention:
Local clinic
“In our Wijkkliniek (local clinic) we provide care that’s tailored to the needs of elderly patients in Amsterdam. The clinic, which is the result of a partnership between hospitals, family doctors and senior care organizations, provides an environment where patients can receive hospital care and recover in a home-like environment – in their own neighborhoods. This is in line with the concept of ‘Appropriate Care’: care that’s tailored to what the patient wants and their quality of life, without unnecessary treatments.”
“To better respond to the growing care needs of vulnerable elderly patients, we’re also developing preventive forms of care. Older people who get the right kind of support as soon as they need it stay healthier and are less likely to need acute care.”
Bianca M. Buurman, Professor of Acute Elder Care
Our content
We’re fostering stronger synergy between our core tasks to achieve high-quality and innovative care
EXCELLING TOGETHER
The Dutch UMCs have an international reputation for excellence in medical research. With Amsterdam UMC now among the top 3 medical research institutions in Europe, we feel a strong responsibility to improve our understanding of – and find new treatments for – the most complex and rare diseases. In all our core tasks, we’re constantly developing new knowledge, insights and solutions together with our partners and patients.
NEW INSIGHTS
We explore innovative treatments and apply our findings in practice. We also treat patients who can’t receive care elsewhere, serving as a last resort. Future professionals benefit from these latest insights.
CHOOSING QUALITY
We make deliberate choices when it comes to our patient care by asking ourselves whether our academic setting actually adds value, or if someone would be just as well served by one of our partners. To bridge the gap between care and patients, we work closely with other hospitals, specialist networks and patients themselves. By streamlining our portfolio, we can continue to provide high-quality care to patients with complex and rare diseases and excel in areas where we can make a real difference.
FOR SOCIETY
We want our research to have a positive social impact. That’s why we listen to what society and patients ask of us. We conduct pioneering research and valorize new knowledge by sharing it with the outside world and applying it in our patient care and education. In doing so, we optimize our effectiveness in contributing to health for all and accessible healthcare.
INNOVATIVE
We never stop innovating, using new technological developments such as AI to ensure high-quality research and tertiary referral care. With its state-of-the-art research facilities and infrastructure, Amsterdam UMC is an ideal incubator for these innovations. Together with VU Amsterdam, the University of Amsterdam and other key partners, we’re exploring new ways to apply AI and other technologies in healthcare.
Amsterdam UMC is shaping the healthcare of the future. We’re developing high-quality, innovative care for and with patients suffering from complex or rare illnesses. We’re also working to improve the health of people and the planet to help prevent disease and reduce health disparities. Our four core tasks – research, education & training, patient care and valorization – connect knowledge and commitment to make a difference for patients and society.
We’re actively contributing to a sustainable and healthy future
HEALTHY PEOPLE LIVING ON A HEALTHY PLANET
Amsterdam UMC is doing its part to address two major challenges: access to healthcare and new health issues arising from climate change. To tackle these problems, we’re applying insights from research on health promotion and sustainability in all of our core tasks.
PATIENTS FIRST
We tailor our care to the needs of our patients, who – often together with their loved ones – are involved in the decisions that are made about their treatment (‘Appropriate Care’). By properly informing patients and asking them about their wishes, doctors and patients are able to arrive at the best decisions together (‘Deciding Together’).
REDUCING THE DEMAND FOR CARE
To prevent health problems, we collect knowledge about prevention, which we then apply in practice and use to train future health professionals. Through our research, we also gain a better understanding of which treatments produce the best health outcomes. This is how we help reduce the demand for care and contribute to a healthier society.
REDUCING HEALTH DISPARITIES
Together with our two affiliated universities, we’re investigating how to reduce health disparities – between Amsterdam residents, but also regionally, nationally and internationally. We translate scientific insights into policy and education that helps enhance the health of current and future generations.
CIRCULAR
Amsterdam UMC recognizes the urgent need for climate action. That’s why we’re drastically reducing our use of primary raw materials, greening our purchasing process and minimizing waste through reuse and recycling. All of our organizational units are committed to achieving circular operations. To further reduce our footprint, we’re making a consistent effort to limit our carbon emissions and modifying our buildings where possible.
SUSTAINABLE CARE
We do groundbreaking research on sustainable care. By immediately integrating new insights into our patient care, we’re able to achieve circularity and reduce our environmental impact. We also focus on the interplay between health, care, the environment and climate change, and we prepare our students to address these challenges.
SUSTAINABLE AND HEALTHY CHOICES
Because we care about the health of people and the planet, we also feel a responsibility to help our colleagues make sustainable and healthy choices.
This is how we’re delivering high-quality and
innovative care:
Amsterdam Skills Center
Surgeons and other medical professionals from around the world have been coming to the Amsterdam Skills Center (ASC) to hone their surgical techniques since 2019. The ASC is open 24/7, has 12 operating rooms and uses simulators, virtual reality technology and artificial intelligence, allowing doctors to improve their skills without operating on actual patients. “This streamlines the training process for both new and experienced surgeons,” explains ASC founder and surgeon Jaap Bonjer. “Our facilities also allow you to practice challenging situations together with your entire team. So this isn’t just a training center for surgeons, but also for anesthesiologists, surgical assistants, pulmonologists and cardiologists.”
EXAMPLE
EXAMPLE
This is how we’re working on patient-centered care and prevention:
Local clinic
“In our Wijkkliniek (local clinic) we provide care that’s tailored to the needs of elderly patients in Amsterdam. The clinic, which is the result of a partnership between hospitals, family doctors and senior care organizations, provides an environment where patients can receive hospital care and recover in a home-like environment – in their own neighborhoods. This is in line with the concept of ‘Appropriate Care’: care that’s tailored to what the patient wants and their quality of life, without unnecessary treatments.”
“To better respond to the growing care needs of vulnerable elderly patients, we’re also developing preventive forms of care. Older people who get the right kind of support as soon as they need it stay healthier and are less likely to need acute care.”
Bianca M. Buurman,
Professor of Acute Elder Care
© Amsterdam UMC 2025
