François Grémy Award of Excellence: Antoine Geissbühler honoured for his contributions to digital health

Professor Antoine Geissbühler, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Geneva (UNIGE) and Head of the Division of eHealth and Telemedicine at the Geneva University Hospitals (HUG), was awarded the François Grémy Award of Excellence in September 2025. Presented by the International Medical Informatics Association (IMIA), this is the highest international distinction in the field of medical informatics.

A career dedicated to innovation in healthcare

A physician and pioneer in eHealth, Antoine Geissbühler has helped position Geneva as a laboratory for digital health. He played a key role in developing a pilot project for secure electronic data exchange between hospitals, physicians and laboratories, which went on to inspire Switzerland’s national Electronic Patient Record. He also founded the Réseau en Afrique Francophone pour la Télémédecine (RAFT), a network now spanning more than twenty countries that enables thousands of healthcare professionals to access training and specialised consultations remotely. These initiatives demonstrate his ability to combine technological innovation with accessibility and societal impact.

Digital health: challenges and responsibilities

The award also recognises his sustained engagement in addressing the major challenges of digital health: ensuring system interoperability, protecting sensitive data, strengthening cybersecurity, fostering trust and adoption among patients and professionals, and developing robust infrastructures and funding models. In each of these areas, Antoine Geissbühler has played a leading role, both in Switzerland and internationally.

An award of global significance

Presented every two years, the François Grémy Award of Excellence honours individuals who have made lasting contributions to the field of medical informatics. Before Antoine Geissbühler, it recognised leaders such as Edward H. Shortliffe (2021), a pioneer of artificial intelligence in medicine; Suzanne Bakken (2019), a specialist in nursing informatics and public health; and Riccardo Bellazzi (2023), an expert in clinical decision-support systems. By joining this distinguished lineage, Geissbühler reinforces Geneva’s central position on the global map of digital health.

Recognition that extends to Campus Biotech

Through this award, the spotlight also falls on the broader Swiss and Geneva ecosystem. The Health Valley stands out as fertile ground for innovation in healthcare, bringing together university hospitals, research centers, start-ups and technological platforms. Located just steps away from UNIGE and HUG, Campus Biotech is fully part of this dynamic landscape.

Antoine Geissbühler’s work in telemedicine, eHealth and secure data management resonates directly with the research and projects carried out at Campus Biotech, where neuroscience, bioengineering and digital health converge.