EUROPEAN STANDARDS FOR PHD EDUCATION IN BIOMEDICINE AND HEALTH SCIENCES (ORPHEUS ACTIVITIES

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1 20th Turkish National Pharmacology Symposium Nov, 2009 EUROPEAN STANDARDS FOR PHD EDUCATION IN BIOMEDICINE AND HEALTH SCIENCES (ORPHEUS ACTIVITIES ) Zdravko Lacković, University of Zagreb School of Medicine, ORPHEUS President The aims of ORPHEUS are: To give active support and guidance to members of ORPHEUS in enhancing their contributions to medicine and society in general. To provide information to members of ORPHEUS and all PhD candidates all over Europe. To represent higher education and research in biomedicine and health sciences and to influence policy making at national, European and international level. To encourage cooperation among members of the Association and the development of effective bilateral and multilateral networks. To promote cooperation in research and development of joint PhD programmes. To promote harmonisation of PhD programmes in biomedicine and health sciences To encourage mobility of PhD candidates and academic staff through all regions of Europe. To stimulate quality assurance of PhD research and education, and in particular to develop an accreditation process of PhD programmes in biomedicine and health sciences. To cooperate with other associations with similar goals

2 A LONG ROAD TO AARHUS 2009 ORPHEUS (The First) European Conference on Harmonisation of PhD Programmes in Biomedicine and Health Sciences, Zagreb 2004 ORPHEUS The Second European Conference on Harmonisation of PhD Programmes in Biomedicine and Health Sciences, Zagreb 2005 ORPHEUS The Third Conference on Biomedical and Health Science Doctoral Training in Europe, Helsinki, September 6-8, 2007 ORPHEUS The Fourth Conference on Biomedical and Health Science Doctoral Training in Europe, Aarhus 23-25, Setting Standards for PhD Education in Health Sciences ORPHEUS 2009 AARHUS DENMARK INTRODUCING ORPHEUS 165 participants, 72 universities 33 European countries

3 Most European Countries (73 univ 33contries ) participate in conference (Aarhus) 33 full member university Associate member of EUA CDE Extensive web pages (over 100 visits per month) List of European PhD Programmes Presence in many local conferences PHD IN BOLOGNA PROCESS

4 EUROPEAN HARMONISATION ( Bologna Process ) of Undergraduate study Most other fields study 3-4 years Logical position of medicine Graduate study Postgraduate study Phd programs or/and Specializations Bachelor years (5-6 years) Master years (8-10 years) 6 years MD PhD or + Specialist 5-6 years (10-11) Berlin (2003), Bergen (2005) ministerial conferences: Closer link between European High Education Area (EHRA) and European Research Area (ERA) to build Europe of knowledge Doctoral level as a Third Cycle of Bologna Process Need for interdisciplinary training and developement of transferable skills for the need of wider (than academia) European employement market Need for more PhD Responsibility of the universities

5 PHD (DSC) PROGRAMMS IN EUROPE 2008 IN MEDICINE AND HEALTH SCIENCES Countries traditionally without PhD in Medicine (Germany, Austria, Swiss) Countries with two doctorate (3 with MD): PhD and DSc programmes (Hungary) or similar Candidate (aspiratura) and DrSc (Russia) Countries where PhD programs consist of research only Countries where PhD is obtained mostly trough advanced learning Parallel MD/PhD programme Significant Poblem: Lack of information and the lack of exchange of experience. In contrast to growing number of graduate Studies in English PhD programs are in most cases only nationally oriented. Internet search in 2004 of 88 medical schools from 28 European countries only 16 (18.2 %) have a web pages with sufficient and understandable information on PhD programmes SALZBURG 2005 CONFERENCE CONSENSUS 1. The core component of doctoral training is the advancement of research knowledge. 2. Embedding in institutional strategies and policies: universities as institutions need to assume responsibility for ensuring that the doctoral programmes and research training they offer are designed to meet new challenges and include appropriate professional career development opportunities. 3. The importance of diversity 4. Doctoral candidates as early stage researchers: professionals who make a key contribution to the creation of new knowledge. 5. The crucial role of supervision and assessment: 6. Achieving critical mass: 7. Duration: three to four years, as a rule 8. The promotion of innovative structures 9. Increasing mobility 10. Ensuring appropriate funding

6 PROBLEM Toward a real picture of old continent Search PubMed for Croatia Go Limited to Affiliation Publication Date To

7 Number of papers / inhabitants (year 2000) Former West Countries Former East Countries Sweden 711 Finland 594 Denmark 581 UK (all) 537 The Nether 522 Norway 362 Ireland 357 Belgium 347 Austria 317 France 258 Slovenia (c 256 Germany 249 Italy 218 Iceland 218 Spain 179 Greece 154 Hungary 102 Luxenburg 98 Croatia (c ) 94 Slovakia (c 75 Czech (c ) 75 Portugal 74 Estonia (c 66 Swiss 59 Malta 49 Poland 47 Turkey 38 Bulgaria 29 Yugoslavia 23 Russian (c 19 Lithuania ( 18 Latvia (c) 18 Ukraine 15 Macedonia 10 Belarus (c 9.5 BiH (c) 6 Romania 5 Moldova (c 2 Albania 0.6 Where is former East Europe? (data for 2000) East London

8 NO CHANGE IN 2008 COUNTRY Population (milion) PubMed 2008 Publications/ milion Albania 3, ,66 Latvia 2, ,22 Macedonia 2, ,91 Bosnia + Herzegovina 3, ,75 Estonia 1, ,82 Lithuania 3, ,35 Slovenia 1, ,80 Serbia 9, ,28 Croatia 4, ,28 Hungary 9, ,47 Norway 4, ,19 Austria 8, ,21 Finland 5, ,33 Denmark 5, ,18 Sweden 9, ,79 Italy 58, ,52 Spain ,8 Turkey ,97 SWEDEN, DENMARK, FINLAND EXAMPLE: ECONOMICAL DETERMINISM IS NOT NECESSARY

9 FRIENDLY ENCOUNTER (high digital tecnology and ): Is it only for tourists? How long it can lasts?... IS THIS NOT A PICTURE OF THE SCIENCE IN EUROPE? SOME EUROPEAN CHARACTERISTICS Unequal development Lack of information and mutual understanding Constant changes (Bologna process) including introduction of PhD programmes as a third cycle of Bologna process. POSSIBLE CONSEQUENCES Are high criteria in some countries in danger? Small scientific communities: perpetuing status quo (or even worse because of a lack of intermediate degree and huge number of students enrolled in PhD Programmes and the) Common problem: lack of critical mass in all fields of biomedical and health research WILL BOLOGNA PROCESS IMPROOVE SCIENTIFIC PERFORMANCE OF THE OLD CONTINENT? Maybe - but only with intensive collaboration, harmonisation, consensus standards

10 Danger of the THIRD CYCLE Impossible Spontaneus Scenario No.1 In a countries with poor scientific performance the number of PhDs is increased 10 times. However, as could be predicted the performance of PhDs was poor, and their countries didn t need them. Connected with mobility most of them left for scientifically more advanced countries. Final result was that the scientific performance of all continent declined. Danger of the THIRD CYCLE Impossible Spontaneus Scenario No.2 In a countries with poor scientific performance it was decided that a number of PhDs should be increased 10 times. However, because of the poor domestic scientific performance the PhD candidates enroll in PhD programs in scientifically more advanced countries. However, after obtaining PhD degree only 3 percent returned to home country. Final result was that the scientific and economical gap between developed countries was increased.

11 Danger of the THIRD CYCLE Impossible Spontaneus Scenario No.3 In a country with poor scientific performance it was decided that a number of PhDs should be increased 10 times. However, because of the poor domestic scientific performance the PhD candidates obtain PhDs without scientific significance. Consenquently nobody needed them. Final result was that the country had best educated taxi drivers ORPHEUS Conference Zagreb 2004 Zagreb 2005 Helsinki 2007 Aarhus 2009 Vienna2010 Outcome Zagreb Declaration first European consensus on PhD programme Recomendation how to organize PhD Programme (supervisor competence, responsibility of the university, conflict of interest etc) Helsinki Consensus Statement Importance of clinical PhD Aarhus Position Document: Setting standards for PhD education in health scienes The Advancement of European Biomedical and Health Science PhD Education by Cooperative networking

12 UNIVERSITY OF ZAGREB MEDICAL SCHOOL PhD Programme: Biomedicine and Health Sciences EUROPEAN CONFERENCE ON HARMONISATION OF PhD PROGRAMMES IN MEDICINE AND HEALTH SCIENCES University of Zagreb Medical School Zagreb, Croatia, April 24-25, 2004 ORPHEUS 2004 ZAGREB DECLARATION Article 1 PhD programme is intended to enable individuals, after completing and defending their PhD thesis, to carry out independent, original and scientifically significant research and critically evaluate work done by others. Article 2 As in any kind of scientific peer review process, the reviewers of PhD thesis should be competent and independent from the PhD thesis, candidates and supervisor. In this sense, the participants of the Conference would like to encourage the inclusion of supervisors from other universities and countries.

13 Article 3...necessary achievement is a PhD thesis based on original in extenso publications in internationally recognized scientific-medical journals. The independent contribution of the candidate should be clearly demonstrated (for example the candidate being the first author)... The most conflicting part: Article 3 cont....the MINIMAL REQUIREMENT FOR THE PHD THESIS IN MEDICINE AND HEALTH SCIENCES SHOULD BE THE EQUIVALENT OF AT LEAST THREE IN EXTENSO PAPERS PUBLISHED IN INTERNATIONALLY RECOGNIZED JOURNALS. (enforced in Aarhus Consensus Statement 2009, supported by AMSE Conference, Zagreb 2009)

14 Second ORPHEUS Conference: Guidelines for Organisation of PhD Programmes in Biomedicine and Health Sciences It is recommended that national and international authorities create specific funds which would specifically facilitate the mobility and cooperation in the PhD programmes. It is recommended that all European medical schools and schools of public health create a pan-european network to enable the mobility of the candidates. Joint advisership should be encouraged. Possible local regulations, which restrict scientists from other countries to be acknowledged as advisers, should be abandoned. In line with the need for international cooperation, all universities should allow the presentation of the PhD thesis not only in national languages but also in other European languages understood by most participants in such public presentations.

15 ORPHEUS The Third Conference on Biomedical and Health Science Doctoral Training in Europe, Helsinki, September 6-8, 2007 Helsinki Consensus Statement on PhD Training in Clinical Research «Helsinki Consesus Statement» Article 1 Clinical research at the highest level is important for the advancement of prevention, diagnosis, therapy and clinical sciences in general, and for the benefit of patients, doctors and the community at large. Furthermore, scientifically qualified clinicians are needed to supervise, educate and train medical students. Accordingly, we recommend that PhD training associated with medical schools should include programmes in clinical research. Article 2 The criteria for a PhD in clinical research should be the same as those in other sciences. ORPHEUS re-affirms the principles set out in the 'Zagreb declaration' concerning the earning of, and standard for, the PhD degree. In particular, the award of the PhD should require original high quality research that has been, or can be, published in international peer-reviewed journals.

16 Aarhus position statement INTERNATIONALISATION c) Access to PhD Programme To ensure quality of PhD Programmes, it is advantageos that PhD students are selected on the basis of competitive annd internationally open process 5. Requrement of PhD Thesis To encourage internaltionalisation it is it is recommended that the thesis is written in English. etc. The influence of ORPHEUS ACTIVITY - Case of Croatia

17 From the national report by all deans of the medical schools in Croatia at Helsinki Conference 2007 PhD Thesis: per year 90% in Zagreb broj obranjenih doktorata znanosti (5-godišnji pomični prosjek) Medicinski fakultet u Zagrebu Medicinski fakulteti u Rijeci, Splitu i Osijeku First PhD (Krista Kostijal Šimunović: Utjecaj nekih iona na lučenje acetilkolina) Perood % of PhD Thesis resulting in at least one scientific publication = 25 % 2005 According to rules in all 4 medical school in Croatia it is necessary to have 3 publication, at least one in CC, (Zagreb - minimal imact 1,0 or more) Participants of the ORPHEUS 2009 Forth Conference in Aarhus confirmed their commitment to the principles of previous ORPHEUS conferences (2004, 2005 and 2007), as well as to the Salzburg Bologna conference (2005). PhD is a research degree and has to be based on a productive research environment It was realized that where the research environment is not sufficiently productive, then cooperation and networking might be the best solution. Such a solution would stimulate local development and avoid excessive brain drain. This will be the topic of the 2010 ORPHEUS conference to be held in Vienna.

18 Ideally the doors of all European universities i.e. laboratories, research facilities, and advisers should be open to all young scientists as much as possible It seems like a long way is ahead of us THE SEATLE DECLARATION (expert workshop in Seatle 2005, supported by NSF etc : 14 countries, from 6 continents) two-way influence of doctoral education on the global economy and of globalization on doctoral education tension between nation building and the need for international cooperatin

19 THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION