HealthManagement, Volume 18 - Issue 3, 2018

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The European Institute for Biomedical Imaging Research, EIBIR, supports researchers and industry partners in the coordination of biomedical imaging research throughout Europe and beyond, relieving researchers of the administrative burden, and allowing them to focus on the scientific aspects, ensuring the best possible outcome for the project.


Why do researchers seek European funding?

 

Due to shrinking national research budgets, securing funding for research has become a challenge in past decades. Many national funding schemes do not support a cross-border approach, which limits the scientific collaboration of European research groups. Thus European researchers rely on European Union (EU) funding sources.

 

Horizon 2020

 

Horizon 2020 is the largest EU research and innovation programme, with a budget of nearly €80 billion for seven years (2014 to 2020). Horizon 2020 aims to ensure Europe produces world-class science, to remove barriers to innovation and make it easier for the public and private sectors to work together in delivering innovation. It also promises more breakthroughs and discoveries by taking great ideas from the lab to the market. However, due to the increasing interest in Horizon 2020 projects the programme has become highly competitive with a success rate below 13% and a risk that even high-quality project proposals will not be funded. Additionally, successful projects are facing the challenge of navigating through the rules and regulations of large EU projects while simultaneously carrying out innovative research with partners from across Europe.

 

Consequently multidisciplinary and multinational consortia require professional support for proposal preparation and project management to ensure the successful accomplishment of project goals.

 

EIBIR and its services

 

The European Institute for Biomedical Imaging Research, EIBIR (eibir.org), is a nonprofit organisation founded by the European Society of Radiology that supports researchers and industry partners in the preparation and coordination of biomedical imaging research projects throughout Europe. EIBIR comprises a large and diverse landscape of more than 130 network members (universities, hospitals and research organisations), 11 shareholder organisations representing the major scientific societies in the field, a Scientific Advisory Board and a dedicated Industry Panel. EIBIR is currently partner or coordinator of seven projects that are funded under Horizon 2020.

 

At the EIBIR office in Vienna, Austria, an experienced team of six project managers offers a broad portfolio of services to its members, which cover the entire process chain from project planning until project execution.

 

In terms of proposal preparation, services include advice on relevant EU funding opportunities, identifying consortium partners, review of the project outline by EIBIR`s Scientific Advisory Board, the coordination of consortium meetings and conference calls, provision of call-specific templates, proposal writing support and handling of the administrative section of proposals in the online portal of the European Commission.

 

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If a proposal is selected for funding, EIBIR coordinates the meetings with EU Project Officers, guides partners through the administrative process for signing the Grant Agreement, coordinates the preparation of the Consortium Agreement that regulates the collaboration of project partners and takes care of all financial provisions.

 

After the project kickoff EIBIR assumes responsibility for all day-to-day administrative tasks and communication with the European Commission, serves as the contact point for consortium partners, runs the quality assurance and risk management in collaboration with the project´s Scientific Coordinator, manages all project boards and committees and ensures the timely submission of all project deliverables, milestones and official periodic reports including financial reports.

 

In terms of dissemination, project partners also benefit from EIBIR`s established, extensive network and media contacts through which the conducted research is widely and rapidly communicated.

 

In summary, the offered support relieves researchers of the administrative burden, allowing them to focus on the scientific aspects and thereby ensuring the best possible outcome for the project. All services are free of charge for active EIBIR network members and can be used for a moderate annual fee.

 

Strategic research agenda for biomedical imaging

 

EIBIR is also active in advocating the inclusion of imaging topics in EU calls. To ensure that biomedical imaging is also well represented in the next EU Research and Innovation Programme (2021–2027) and to provide funding opportunities for the imaging community at large, the EIBIR team together with a dedicated taskforce from its Scientific Advisory Board are currently preparing a Strategic Research Agenda for Biomedical Imaging.

 

The aim of the document is to:

  1. identify the current challenges and needs in healthcare
  2. illustrate how biomedical imaging can help in addressing these, and
  3. to stimulate dedicated research funding efforts.

 

Topics identified so far include:

  • Preventing disease through precision medicine with imaging
  • Contribution to a healthy start
  • Targeted and precision therapies
  • Impact of environment and lifestyle on health
  • Healthcare demands of Europe’s population through disease prevention facilitated by medical imaging
  • Disease-specific targeted therapies
  • Early and improved information on fetal health and prenatal growth and prevention of anomaly development using advanced imaging technologies.
  • Accurate depiction of the impact of lifestyle and environmental factors on health supported by medical imaging
  • Machine learning and artificial intelligence in medical imaging by exploiting its existing data and expertise

It is expected that the document will be released in mid-2018.

 

Work with us

 

EIBIR is dedicated to facilitate increased engagement of the biomedical imaging community in research, and we encourage dedicated researchers and industry representatives to get in touch with us ([email protected]).

 

Key Points

  • EU project management
  • Services for researchers
  • Proposal writing
  • Dissemination