A conversation with... Eelko Vooijs
Manager Employee, Quality and Organisation at ZorgSaam Zeeuws-Vlaanderen
Eelko is manager of Employee, Quality and Organisation at ZorgSaam Zeeuws-Vlaanderen. Keeping good care available and accessible for all residents in Zeeuws-Vlaanderen is the main challenge ZorgSaam will face in the coming years.
ZorgSaam Zeeuws-Vlaanderen is the expert in providing care for every age in Zeeuws-Vlaanderen and beyond. ZorgSaam provides hospital care, home care, care for the elderly and ambulance care. With over 3,500 employees and 600 volunteers, it is the largest healthcare organisation in the region.
Why OnbegrensdZeeuwsVlaanderen?
As ZorgSaam, we are at the heart of the society of Zeeuws-Vlaanderen. It is therefore important to engage with other parties. The care challenges we face now and in the future are about so much more than just care. It is also about education, housing and welfare.
What does the OnbegrensdZeeuwsVlaanderen network mean to you?
We already collaborate a lot at the Zeeland level, for example in the Zeeland Care Coalition. But the situation in Zeeland is often slightly different from the Zeeuw-Vlaanderen perspective. Better to identify this together and work on it together.
Unlimited possibilities of Zeeuws-Vlaanderen?
I see a lot of potential for this region. Precisely because of our unique location, we should be able to solve big issues. For instance, there are many opportunities for cooperation with Belgium. The examples are already there. Just look at the port and the merger between Zeeland Seaports and Ghent Harbour. In healthcare, too, we have been cooperating with UZ Gent for a long time and want to expand this cooperation in the future. I think that it is precisely in cooperation across borders that there are also opportunities for challenges in education and with personnel.
How do you see your task and ambition within OnbegrensdZeeuwsVlaanderen?
I think it is important to invest in the relationship with other partners in order to contribute to what is important for Zeeuws-Vlaanderen: quality of life. And we live in the region where this should definitely work. In society, I really see the will to make something of it. In that respect, people know how to find each other here.
What do you think is important for Zeeuws-Vlaanderen?
Together, we must ensure that living and working here remain pleasant. With good public transport, good and accessible healthcare and education and sufficient employment. If we manage to keep this in cohesion, it will increase the attraction of Zeeuws-Vlaanderen.
Why should people come to Zeeuws-Vlaanderen?
I would say let Zeeuws-Vlaanderen surprise you. You have the best of both worlds here. Peace and quiet, affordable housing, nature, culture and big cities like Ghent, Antwerp and Bruges in your backyard.