Joaquín Arenas Barbero Subdirector General de Evaluación y Fomento de la Investigación

ISSUENIH Medical schools AHCs FIG. 1. POLICY CONSEQUENCES OF THE BUSH DOCTRINE Emphasis/investments Basic research funded 2:1 vs. clinical research Facilitated basic research promotions and space allocation Facilitated basic vs. clinical research space allocation and core infrastructures Clinical research Recruitment and retention Populations Basic researchers Ph.D.’s nearly exclusively M.D./Ph.D.’s => ? clinical investigators of the future Intramural programs and draft Nonexistent Largely relegated to industry and pharmaceutical trials Import patients with rare diseases; no health care system affiliations Left to AHCs Left to industry Proof of principle General Clinical Research Centers (came later)

1. The Mayo Clinic Center forTranslational Science Activities

1. National Institutes Health Cinical and Translational Science Awards

Primary goals: Strong basic research Strong clinical research Strong translational research: bringing basic research knowledge into clinical practice, and vice versa -- all three of the above being facilitated by interdisciplinary research and public–private partnerships Tool Box: “Best Practice” for medical research in Europe:

Tools to reach these goals: people Career track schemes with attractive possibilities for researchers taking advantage of co-funding strategy European Medical Scientific Training Programme (EMSTP) for physicians and scientists scaling up existing successful initiatives The highest level of research ethics, and no scientific misconduct

EMRC and medical and translational sciences training Training and career track schemes with attractive possibilities for researchers i) Specific measures to reinforce training of medical doctors (MDs) in science, and training of scientists in medicine or more clinical disciplines, to enhance the continuum from basic to translational and clinical research and vice versa. University hospitals, will play a major role in combining high-level training programmes and world-class research centres. ii) Well-defined recruitment policies to establish a balance between short-term and tenured or longer-term career positions, with more visibility and career prospects, iii) Incentives for encouraging geographic as well as inter-sector mobility of researchers during their professional lives

Outlook: Future Policy Challenges Keep up with increasing number of publications/patents Keep up with established trend of GERD funds, from >1% of GDP to reach 2% y 2010 Identify reasons for brain drain of young researchers Lack of private initiative (funding) compared to countries like United Kingdom or France Reform of university hospitals in Spain and increase the number of biomedical research institutions Create a clear professional career for the biomedical researcher Increase the numbers of medical doctors who divide their activity between practice and research

MUCHAS GRACIAS