New partnership agreement to bring patients’ and relatives’ knowledge closer to research and development
All Faculties of Health Sciences in Denmark are entering into a new partnership with Danish Patients and the National Centre for User Involvement in shaping the future of health research.
For the first time, all Faculties of Health Sciences in Denmark are entering into a joint strategic partnership with the National Centre for User Involvement, which is part of Danish Patients. With this agreement, the parties aim to strengthen collaboration between research, patients, relatives and civil society, and to ensure that the knowledge of patients and their relatives is more systematically integrated into health science research and development.
”This marks an important joint step. When all Faculties of Health Sciences join forces with us, we can bring the knowledge of patients and their relatives even closer to the research that will help shape the healthcare system of the future.
There are already many positive experiences with user involvement and collaboration between research and patients. What is new is that all Faculties of Health Sciences are now joining forces with the National Centre for User Involvement in a shared partnership, providing a stronger common foundation and pointing towards the next steps in developing the health research of the future.
”It is a strength for us at the Faculty of Health Sciences at the University of Southern Denmark that so many are already working with user involvement. We now have the opportunity to bring together these experiences, learn from one another, and take the next step in developing our research.
A new shared foundation for collaboration on health research
The partnership agreement has been entered into between the National Centre for User Involvement under Danish Patients and the Faculties of Health Sciences at the University of Southern Denmark, the University of Copenhagen, Aarhus University and Aalborg University. The agreement provides the framework for a long-term collaboration built on the universities’ research strengths and the practice-based knowledge of patient and relatives’ organisations.
”If research is to make a real difference, it must be grounded in the people it concerns. With this new partnership, we are strengthening the link between patients’ experiences and the research that must be translated into better solutions in the healthcare system.
The partnership identifies personalised medicine, user-driven data, health inequality and healthcare structures as key areas of collaboration. The ambition is to strengthen research, development, methodology, implementation and evaluation through closer interaction between universities and civil society.
”As a professor of shared decision-making, this is an area very close to my heart. Patients are the essence of the Danish healthcare system. We exist for them. I therefore look forward to contributing to the collaboration.
The partnership is the first step in a long-term collaboration aimed at strengthening the relevance, impact and application of research for the benefit of patients and society.