Berlin, 25 February 2025 - For the second time, the Network of University Medicine (NUM) is inviting all those active and interested in NUM to an intensive exchange on the future of interdisciplinary and multicentre clinical research at the bcc at Alexanderplatz on 25 and 26 February.
The convention was opened today by Prof Dr Heyo Kroemer, Chairman of the Board of Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin. In his address, he emphasised the need for better foundations for networked research: "The NUM has established itself as an indispensable national platform for clinical and clinical-epidemiological research. The joint and comprehensive collection and utilisation of data in clinical studies and from routine patient care as well as the rapid response capability of clinical research in the event of major health crises are skills that we urgently need in Germany. The necessary Reseach Infrastructures can only be developed and maintained in this form in a network like the NUM."
Dr Karl-Eugen Huthmacher, State Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research, then emphasised the indispensability of the NUM in his welcoming address: "The NUM is needed. For effective action in potential health crises, for the rapid generation of medical knowledge and the best possible care for patients. Despite difficult starting conditions, the NUM is the best example of the power of cooperation and joint commitment. In the face of increasing international competition, the NUM model is indispensable."
This was followed by a lively panel discussion with various NUM stakeholders on the question of what role the NUM should play in the field of clinical research in Germany in the future and what the NUM should implement by 2030 from the perspective of its partners.
On the second day of the convention, Professor William Whiteley from the Usher Institute of Population Health Sciences and Informatics at the University of Edinburgh will give a keynote speech on opportunities in health data science through science-led collaborations. On both days, there will also be numerous parallel sessions organised "by the community for the community". These offer participants the opportunity to engage in intensive dialogue on specific issues - covering a wide range of topics, such as the greater involvement of patients in research or the use of Artificial Intelligence.