The Spanish Platform for Clinical Trials (SCREN) that finances the Carlos III Health Institute (ISCIII), an agency under the Ministry of Science and Innovation, participates in the clinical research metadata repository that has created the European Infrastructure for Clinical Research (ECRIN) with the aim of sharing useful information for the launch of clinical trials related to COVID-19.
The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic requires researchers to join forces around the world to improve diagnoses, find treatments, and develop a vaccine, making sharing research data a critical step in this global cooperative effort. In this context, ECRIN has decided to create a COVID-19 working group with its national partners and launch this metadata repository, which includes information on this disease, including information resulting from studies that are being carried out in clinical centers and that may be useful for launching and designing new trials.
The clinical research metadata repository It will serve to know the existing clinical studies and related elements, such as protocols, information sheets and consent forms, data management plans, statistical analysis plans, case report forms, results, publications and descriptive metadata, among others. All of them are important elements that can be used for the design and execution of the studies, according to Gonzalo Arévalo, deputy director of the ISCIII International Area.
The repository is freely available to all scientific researchers working in clinical research and is especially useful for those working on COVID-19. The system is regularly updated by collecting data from the world's leading information sources, from New Zealand to the Netherlands and from Japan to Lebanon. The current clinical research metadata repository is the first beta version of the platform; ECRIN is updating the content of the platform regularly while working on new versions.
ECRIN COVID-19 Working Group
On the other hand, ECRIN has established a COVID-19 working group to administer and deploy tools and services that help scientific research on COVID-19. Related information has been posted on the ECRIN website, for example on COVID-19 literature reviews, funding calls, international trial registries, and regulatory and ethical considerations for ongoing trials during the pandemic. In the ECRIN page You can find more information and receive support.
This initiative is part of the effort that the various pan-European infrastructures are carrying out in a coordinated manner to put all the clinical and research services at the service of the research and clinical community. useful resources in COVID-19 research, which are in turn an integral part of the European Coronavirus Plan (ERAvsCORONA Action Plan).
