United for One Health

Sciana Fellow Sven Streit reflects on his Sciana experience to date, leadership, and his hopes for the future

Sven Streit co-leads the Interprofessional Primary Care section at the Bern Institute of Primary Care Medicine (BIHAM) at the University of Bern. His research focuses on patients and their medications, particularly in reducing or stopping unnecessary medications and how this can be accomplished through collaboration between physicians and pharmacists. In addition, he and his wife operate a primary care practice in Konolfingen.

Sven grew up in Aargau and studied medicine in Bern, earning his medical degree in 2008. Six years later, he completed his training as a specialist in general internal medicine. Sven also has a master's in epidemiology from the University of London and a Ph.D. in public health and primary care from Leiden University in the Netherlands. He is a member of Sciana's fifth cohort. 

Sciana spoke with Sven during Cohort 5's third in-person residential meeting in November 2023. This interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.

Sciana Network: As this is your third in-person residential meeting, what comes to mind when you think of your experience in this programme?

Sven Streit: You always need a moment to adjust when meeting with colleagues from three countries and just to have a break from the busy daily living. I really like the level of where the discussions are going [which] you can always bring some elements back to your home country after you leave.

SN: Part of Sciana's mission is to help equip leaders for future challenges in health and wellbeing. Could you provide examples of what you've learned about leadership while participating in this programme?

SS: I think the term "leadership" is now broader than it used to be before. I've learned more skills that make leadership successful, like the 'imperfect leader' or the 'collaborative leader.' All those elements resonate with the position I have at the university. So, I try to implement them there.

SN: Cohort 5's overall Sciana Challenge is "Building a connected and sustainable health ecosystem based on One Health principles and approaches." What does this mean to you, and could you share more details about what your working group has been investigating? 

SS: Group One is focusing [on] One Health. In that respect, we have conducted interviews with experts to understand the definition of One Health [and identify] which elements are needed, let's say, in [the] training of the future workforce so that those colleagues would be fit for a future where One Health is more important. I think [that] it is a topic of interest [and] I think we still live in silos when it comes to health care for humans, animals, and the planet. [So] I think building some bridges is needed.

SN: By your fourth and final meeting, what are you hoping to have achieved from your time with the Sciana Network?

SS: I'm looking forward to some closure to the challenge, to see all the three groups, [and to witness] what we have achieved so far [in terms of] learnings and elements that we could continue to work on in our professional lives or as a network. Personally, I'm really looking forward to having more international events like the last one in Paris to engage with experts that are also here now [and] to have these moments where this broader network can come together and discuss.