Relieved of 'Paperwork' - The TMF Supports Medical Researchers
Opening speakers (from left to right): Dr. Ralf Herold, Prof. Dr. Christof Dörfer, Dr. Cordelia Andressen, Prof. Dr. Michael Krawczak, Prof. Dr. Martin Schrappe. © TMF e.V.
Thanks to technological progress, medical research can increasingly rely on data from the patient care context. This allows for faster and more efficient execution of research projects and enables more reliable results. However, numerous legal and ethical questions still need to be clarified along the way. In particular, data protection issues can be solved with good participant and consent management, explained Thilo Weichert, the Data Protection Commissioner for Schleswig-Holstein, during the 4th TMF Annual Congress, which concluded today in Kiel. He also emphasized the good and constructive cooperation between the TMF and the data protection officers of the federal government and the states.
Especially regarding the cross-border use of patient data for clinical research, the legal framework is still unclear because legal provisions and the legal practice regarding data protection and privacy differ significantly among EU member states. "In a project funded by the EU, we are analyzing and comparing the current legal situation in the various member states," reported Roland Krause (TMF).
Germany Can Contribute Experiences and Solutions to Europe
A significant topic of discussion in this context is also the current draft of an EU Data Protection Regulation. "In Germany, we already have a lot of experience and good solutions for dealing with high data protection requirements in a federal system," emphasized Prof. Dr. Klaus Pommerening, University of Mainz. The TMF will also contribute a coordinated assessment of medical researchers to this political process, as it successfully did in 2011, for example, in connection with discussions about a Biobank Act in Germany.
In 2003, the TMF’s Workgroup on Data Protection presented generic concepts for data protection in medical research networks and coordinated them with the federal government's and states' data protection officers. During the congress, Prof. Pommerening, a longtime spokesperson for the Data Protection Workgroup, presented the TMF’s updated data protection concepts. "The concepts are now modular and scalable, making them easier to adapt for various types of medical research projects," Pommerening said.
Expression of a Fundamental Change in Scientific Culture
The University Medical Center Schleswig-Holstein (UKSH) hosted this year's TMF Annual Congress, attended by around 160 researchers and science managers from across Germany. According to Dr. Cordelia Andreßen, State Secretary in the Ministry of Science, Economic Affairs and Transport of the State of Schleswig-Holstein, in her opening speech, the TMF is an expression of a fundamental change in scientific culture and addresses many important issues.
Researchers from UKSH presented their work in the field of molecular medicine, which is prominently represented in Schleswig-Holstein by the Excellence Cluster "Inflammation at Interfaces." They also benefit from the TMF's work: "As an individual researcher, I would hardly be able to work through all the regulatory requirements relevant to our projects. The TMF is, therefore, extremely valuable because it takes on such tasks for everyone and provides results," said Professor Dr. Philip Rosenstiel, Institute of Clinical Molecular Biology at Kiel University. Professor Dr. Jochen Hampe from the Department of Internal Medicine I at UKSH put it more colloquially: "The TMF relieves me of 'paperwork,' allowing me to focus better on my central tasks - especially my patients."
A Program by Researchers for Researchers
This year's annual congress of the TMF, under the leadership of Prof. Dr. Michael Krawczak, Director of the Institute of Medical Informatics and Statistics at UKSH Kiel and Chairman of the Board of the TMF, focused on various central topics, developments, and solutions for medical collaborative research. The program was designed - true to the motto of the TMF, "by researchers, for researchers" - from the professional workgroups of the TMF. Established scientists and young researchers - registered in groups from some locations - used the two days for concentrated further education and praised the informative overview of many relevant topics.
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