Medical University of Bialystok opened Clinical Research Support Center
The goal of the Clinical Research Support Center (CSC) is to develop medical research in the Podlaskie province to address the gap in the clinical research system and implement ambitious, innovative scientific projects. It will provide comprehensive assistance to the university and its hospitals in the implementation of clinical research. Cooperation with PCPs and other clinical partners will complement the newly established regional research network.
The project of the Medical University of Bialystok for the realization of the Center has received funding in the amount of PLN 10 million. from the funds of the Agency for Medical Research (ABM). As the president of the Medical Research Agency, Dr. Radoslaw Sierpinski, who was present at the opening ceremony of the center, said, "The development of innovative medicine, is a celebration of patients. Clinical trials determine the quality of medicine, enable access to therapies, and are often the chance of a lifetime for patients."
The Rector of the Medical University of Bialystok, Prof. Adam Krętowski, PhD, in opening the Clinical Research Support Center, noted that the cutting-edge research conducted at the center will contribute to better quality of treatment for patients.
About 170 studies will be conducted annually at the Clinical Research Support Center. The university has so far obtained 100 million zlotys from the ABM for various research projects. President of the Medical Research Agency - Radoslaw Sierpinski, MD, PhD, emphasized UMB's high efficiency in obtaining money for innovative clinical research.
The UMB Clinical Research Support Center is currently implementing more than a dozen projects financed by ABM funds. They concern cardiology, oncology, or reproduction. Between 2010 and 2019, UMB units conducted nearly 400 clinical trials, of which 386 were commercial trials and 6 were non-commercial trials. The University is also a sponsor of non-commercial, multi-center clinical trials (cardiology and oncology). The creation of the Clinical Research Support Center will contribute to increasing the number and expanding the range of clinical trials, both commercial and non-commercial, conducted at UMB University Hospitals. Thanks to its dynamic operation, the CSC is likely to attract commercial and non-commercial research previously unavailable to the region's residents, which will significantly contribute to improving the health of citizens. The research being carried out at the Center will be aimed at developing and implementing innovative products or procedures that more effectively fight disease or make patients more comfortable. Patients are the main beneficiaries of clinical trials, as they receive free access to therapies that are often not yet available on the market or that they would not be able to afford if it were not for their participation in clinical trials. This is especially true for oncology trials, where participation in a clinical trial is often a patient's last resort.
With the establishment of an early phase center, it will be possible to implement research projects at every stage and experienced scientific and clinical staff will guarantee a high level of research in most fields of medicine.
OWBK, also with external partners, will carry out projects aimed at testing and, in the future, implementing innovative medicinal products, devices or medical procedures that will make it possible to help patients in emergencies leading to death, and whose application will make it possible to restore full health or fundamentally improve the patient's health. OWBK has so far established close cooperation with 30 primary health care units, which will allow effective and widespread recruitment of patients for clinical trials. This will contribute to increasing BK's direct impact on the health of more citizens-residents of the city and region.
Implementation of the project will enable increased patient access to commercial clinical trials in which patients obtain therapies not covered by NHF reimbursement. This will fill the gap in the health care system, which in Poland allows the use of new and innovative therapies to a very limited extent, giving patients free access to the latest treatments.
As a result of the project, clinical trials will be implemented, the results of which will be transferred to the health care system. At the moment, the UMB Clinical Research Support Center employs more than a dozen people. The facility is located in the UDSK building, at 17 J. Washington St. in Bialystok, entrance from the side of the USK ED.
