History
Preparing for Life began as an initiative of an international group working in the field of prevention and care for congenital disorders, with dedicated Dutch professionals from patient organizations and community genetics as driving forces. They were especially inspired by an advice of the National Health Council of the Netherlands to the Dutch governement, “Preconception Care: a Good Beginning” (2007) and its subsequent implementation advice “Safe Care around Pregnancy and Birth” (2010).
To generate support for an international partnership in the field of preconception care, they organized a "Preparatory Meeting on Preparing for Life" March 21-23, 2010, The Hague, Netherlands) together with the Dutch Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport (VWS) and the Dutch Health Council.
The following year, the PfL initiative was introduced to a wider audience at Biovision – World Life Sciences Forum (March 27-29, 2011, Lyon, France: press release).
Furthermore, close collaboration was established with the WHO, resulting in a meeting in 2012 "to develop a global consensus on preconception care to reduce maternal and childhood mortality and mobility" (February 6-7, 2012, WHO offices, Geneva). At the invitation of the Preparing for Life initiative and the WHO, the following parties also participated: the Bill and Melida Gates Foundation, the March of Dimes Foundation, the Centre for Disease Control, and the Aga Khan University.
The consensus-based outcome of the conference resulted in an extended meeting report and a WHO Policy Brief: "Preconception care: maximizing the gains for maternal and child health." Based on these excellent ouitcomes, it was decided to establish transform the Preparing for Life initiative into the current legal entity.
The day after the meeting, WHO and Preparing for Life met and committed to promoting implementation meetings in all WHO regions as well as at country level, and to establishing an international multi-stakeholder forum and digital preconception platform for professionally involved organizations and individuals. In 2013, WHO-SEARO organised such an implementation meeting (Preconception care - Report of a regional expert group consultation 6–8 August 2013, New Delhi, India). In 2019, Preparing for Life organised the European Policy and Expert Summit on Preconception Health (7-8 March 2019, Europe House, The Hague, The Netherlands: summit report and press release 'Call for European action').