The kick-off meeting for the Clinical Research Initiative for Global Health (CRIGH) was held from 12 to 13 October in Paris, France.
CRIGH aims to serve as a support structure for international collaboration on clinical research for the benefit of patients, healthcare professionals, and health systems. The initiative will seek to optimise clinical research programmes in participating countries, to develop global standards on clinical research, and to promote the take-up of innovative methodology and technologies.
Participants and Outcomes
The meeting brought together around 60 participants from health institutions around the globe. A presentation was made on the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) recommendation on the governance of clinical trials and international cooperation on clinical trials. Breakout sessions were held on each of the six CRIGH projects: infrastructure and funding; global core competencies; research ethics; patient involvement; comparative effectiveness research; and regulatory awareness.
From the OECD GSF to CRIGH
CRIGH is a follow-up to the OECD Global Science Forum (GSF) initiative, which was introduced in 2010 to foster international partnership for non-commercial trials.
Why International Partnership in Clinical Research?
Collaborating across borders means greater access to patients and experience; the sharing of best practices and costs; higher methodological standards; less duplication in clinical research; and increased applicability of research findings. Yet various obstacles prevent multi-country cooperation, from excessive administrative complexity to inadequate funding and infrastructure support. CRIGH aims to address some of these obstacles in order to promote greater and more effective global collaboration in clinical research.