Healthcare under reconstruction: lessons from Conahp 2025

On October 15 and 16, 2025, the National Congress of Private Hospitals (Conahp) brought together representatives from every link in the sector. Members of the Ministry of Health, legislators, board members of the National Association of Private Hospitals (Anahp) and other leaders met to discuss the future of healthcare in the country.

This exchange of knowledge produced lessons that are already beginning to move from speeches into the routine of Brazilian hospitals, especially regarding technology, innovation and artificial intelligence.

Conahp 2025

The large scale of Conahp in 2025 reinforced the quality and importance of the congress, the largest in the sector in Brazil. Three pavilions of the Transamérica Expo Center, in São Paulo, welcomed 6,654 people engaged in topics such as the patient journey, sustainability, innovation, regulation and collaborative care models.

This edition also brought something new: the Future Health Circuit, a 730 m² immersive space that let attendees experience a complete care journey first-hand, from self-service to returning home.

It was possible to see in loco how technology, integration and design are shaping a new model of care in the country. The debates and hands-on demonstrations brought lessons that will serve as a reference for private hospitals in the coming years. Here are the main ones.

Regulation and the future of AI in healthcare

Artificial intelligence was presented at the congress as a reality already embedded in Brazilian hospitals, above all in diagnostic imaging, risk prediction and savings in operational resources. Hospitals are therefore not starting from scratch: the technology is already in use and has even been supporting critical routines.

The central point is that regulation needs to recognize this current state, allowing responsible progress without turning the law into an obstacle. The consensus was that regulating is necessary, but regulating badly can be worse than not regulating.

Especially in light of regulatory texts that use overly broad terms, such as “relevant risk” or “high risk,” the need for legal certainty emerged as a priority. It is essential to subject limited-impact technologies to the same requirements intended for critical systems.

The discussions reinforced that risk-based regulation must be precise, calibrated and proportional, distinguishing experimental tools from mature solutions already used in hospitals. Speakers also defended the importance of preserving the role of health regulatory agencies, with regulatory treatment that does not penalize national innovation initiatives.

Another point emphasized was that AI regulation needs to be living and evolving. Continuous monitoring can adjust the rules to the speed of technology, so that the standard does not become obsolete right after it is approved.

The proposal to create a permanent technical group, with the participation of different actors in the system, emerges as a mechanism for periodic reviews, impact assessment and updating of risk and liability criteria.

The final message that emerged from the debates was this: modern regulation must protect the patient, give hospitals predictability, encourage domestic industry and ensure that innovation moves forward without unnecessary barriers.

Teaching, research and innovation as strategic differentiators

The congress also featured talks reinforcing the importance of a qualitative leap in teaching, research and innovation. Institutions that integrate this educational triad evolve faster, attract talent and build a competitive advantage that is hard to replicate.

Hospitals should also be places that help train clinical leaders, create a scientific culture, accelerate improvements and establish collaboration networks. They are not just places for medical treatment; they are spaces that spread living knowledge.

A health system at its limit: how to create a new model of care

The current model of care does not respond to the epidemiological, technological and economic reality of the 21st century. Rising chronic diseases, the pressure of high costs, fragmented care and the lack of integration between levels of care have driven the system to technical and structural exhaustion.

Beyond bringing in high technology, the challenge is to incorporate it with quality. Solutions applied outside protocol, without coordination or without integration, only perpetuate the cycle of waste. Without integrated networks, strong primary care and coordinated models, the sustainability of the entire ecosystem is compromised.

Trust is the element that sustains the whole system

The word “trust” echoed through several debates. Not as an abstract ideal, but as an operational precondition for any significant progress.

Without trust, there is no mature regulation, interoperability, value-based models, risk sharing, large-scale innovation or continuous improvement.

Today, many relationships are still based on defensive controls and fragmented agendas. The future demands the opposite: structured cooperation, transparent agreements, predictability and alignment among the actors in the system.

Data are the backbone of modern healthcare

On practically every stage, the same conclusion was repeated: data are the new foundation of care. The greater the volume of information available (and the more sophisticated the ability to interpret it), the greater the accuracy of diagnoses, the quality of treatments and hospital process management tend to be.

International experience points in this direction. Hospitals that share data reduce margins of error, learn collectively and speed up improvement cycles. When organizations integrate genetic, laboratory and clinical information and information from medical devices, they create databases capable of transforming how risk is predicted and how diagnosis is established.

International models point the way: hospitals that share data reduce the margin of error and speed up improvements. Organizations that integrate genetic, laboratory, clinical and device data create databases that revolutionize how risk is predicted and diagnosis is made.

Transparency builds credibility

In the debates, disclosing results emerged as one of the main indicators of institutional maturity. Effective transparency, however, is not limited to publishing isolated or decontextualized numbers.

Consistent transparency:

• explains what is being measured and under which methodology;

• presents progress and trajectory over time;

• clearly communicates the actions underway to improve results.

Patients rarely look only for data or indicators. What they are really looking for is evidence of progress in their own health condition. When organizations communicate their results clearly, they strengthen governance and accelerate clinical and operational improvements.

The climate crisis already has a direct impact on health

The climate issue came up strongly in the debates. Evidence indicates that many hospitals are located in vulnerable areas and that extreme events — such as heat waves, floods and landslides — already directly affect care. At the same time, the intensifying climate crisis is increasing the incidence of respiratory, cardiovascular and infectious diseases.

In this scenario, the debate is no longer focused only on how to prevent the crisis and has turned to how to adapt the health system to it. The challenge now involves structuring contingency plans, developing resilient infrastructure, adapting supply logistics and investing continuously in team training.

Conclusion: a common agenda for the future of the sector

Taken together, the debates reveal a clear agenda for the Brazilian health system: more integration, greater institutional trust, intensive use of data, transparency, smart regulation, climate responsibility and expanded mechanisms for disseminating knowledge.

These elements outline the foundation of a new pact for sustainability and innovation in the sector. How institutions respond to this agenda will help define which organizations will evolve in these areas.