Research : the researchers in anger against the government and the Inserm

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Published the 09.10.2017 at 18h57

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A call for projects of Institutes of university hospital (IHU) had to close on 10 October. The key : the allocation of 200 million euros, on two or three research projects of great magnitude, involving, in particular, hospitals, universities and Inserm. Only, the 2 last October, a joint statement of the ministries of Health and of the Research has come to put everything in question.

It is officially announced, eight days of the term, the deferral of the invitation to tender in the summer of 2018 “. The press release also stated that only two projects would be chosen, with an allocation of the respective maximum of 50 million euros, and that their mode of governance would be reviewed. A decision confirmed by a decree in the official journal, dated 6 October.

This u-turn suddenly triggered the anger of the researchers involved in the project. They accuse the government this last minute change, then they have been working for months on the tender. They allege that the passage of the political manipulations between the institutions, on the governance of projects and medical research in general.

The president of the jury resigns

“It immersed me in a great confusion, because no one had told me about, was surprised with AEF professor Richard Frackowiak, head of the department of neurology at the university hospital of Lausanne (Switzerland), and chairman of the international jury of the IHU. The confirmation came in the form of a press release, which I found odd for such an announcement. “

The neurologist then made the decision to resign from his position as chairman of the jury. “I am forced to resign,” he says to APMNews. The independence of the jury is rejected, the governance on the basis of a foundation is rejected, [as well as] the trade-offs that are trying to be constructive. “

For him, this mode of governance allowed for a good coordination between the different actors of the research involved in the project, and authorized the proper autonomy of these projects. However, this autonomy was seen as a bad thing by the director of the Inserm, he added.