ABOUT US
In order to set up a collaborative pandemic intelligence network in Belgium we collect the insights and experience of several scientific institutes. Here we build on experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic as well as exploit the connections of the different partners with other (inter)national projects related to pandemic preparedness.
Funded partners
Contributors
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Hasselt University
The Data Science Institute (DSI) at UHasselt, brings together high quality research, education and industrial & societal collaboration to facilitate the data-driven future. It is one of the four spearhead research institutes of UHasselt. The Center for Statistics (CenStat), one of DSI’s research groups and more specifically the modelling infectious disease group as part of the interuniversity SIMID group (joint UH, UA: www.simid.be) has developed and applied new statistical methodologies for infectious disease data analysis as well as mathematical models including individual-based, network, metapopulation and deterministic and stochastic compartmental models to describe the spread of infectious diseases. Specific research activities include: the analysis of serological data and social mixing patterns relevant to disease transmission, spatiotemporal modelling of infectious diseases and the use of artificial intelligence in mathematical infectious disease modelling. CenStat has through SIMID provided advice to, amongst others, the Belgian government, WHO, ECDC, EMA, CEPI and CDC, in particular during the 2009 H1N1 influenza pandemic, the 2014 Ebola outbreak, the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic and the 2022-2023 MPox outbreak .
Involved researchers
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Niel Hens (coordinator)
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Jeroen Wynen (project manager)
University of Antwerp
The Centre for Health Economics Research & Modeling Infectious Diseases (CHERMID) is a multidisciplinary research centre, undertaking methodological and applied research on the intersection between social sciences, (bio)medicine and mathematics. It aims to study dynamics of within-host immune responses and between-host transmission, and to conduct model-based as well as empirical disease burden, effectiveness and cost-effectiveness research, with a particular focus on infectious diseases and public health. CHERMID employs 15 researchers with diverse backgrounds, including economics, medicine, mathematics, statistics, psychology and bioengineering. CHERMID has extensive expertise in survey based research, large database analysis, disease burden studies (including QALY/DALY assessments), discrete choice experiments and economic evaluation and published >15 systematic and scoping literature reviews. CHERMID's applications include all vaccine preventable diseases, antimicrobial resistance, as well as pandemic influenza, SARS-CoV-1, SARS-CoV-2, Ebola and HIV. CHERMID is part of the 140 researcher strong Vaccine & Infectious Disease Institute (VAXINFECTIO) at UAntwerpen. CHERMID has a collaborative history with UHasselt’s Censtat and Sciensano, which was formalized in 2006 by the SIMID project.
Involved researchers
Sciensano
Sciensano (https://www.sciensano.be) is the Belgian national public health institute that operates under the authority of the federal minister of Public Health and is the scientific reference in the field of public health in Belgium.
Its EU health information system (HIS) unit has taken the lead in many European projects: BRIDGE Health project, the Joint Action in Health Information InfAct, BAHCI (Bringing a Health Claim to Information) and PHIRI (the Population Health Information research infrastructure) in health information since its establishment in 2015. PHIRI facilitates and generates the best available evidence for research on the health and well-being of populations impacted by COVID-19 with 41 partners in 30 countries. As such, the EU HIS unit also has extensive project management experience at EU level. Furthermore, the EU HIS unit is involved in other European project focussed on facilitating the (re)use of health data for research, such as Healthdata@EU pilot project, HealthyCloud, the Joint Action TEHDAS (Towards the European Health Data Space) and BeYond COVID (BY-COVID). The expertise of PHIRI where key aspects of the COVID-19 crisis were addressed, makes this an ideal unit to be involved in this ‘pandemic intelligence’ call. Being connected to the European landscape allows the EU HIS unit to liaise between EU initiatives and Belgian stakeholders. Its Epidemiology of Infectious Diseases (EID) unit develops effective tools for the collection of information which are used to assess the scale and impact of infectious diseases on public health. The EID unit participates in national and international projects to monitor, combat and prevent infectious diseases such as the national reference centres, the risk assessment group and EuroMOMO, TESSy, EU-HIP and UNITED4Surveillance.
Involved researchers
Institute of Tropical Medicine
The Institute of Tropical Medicine’s Department of Public Health (DPH) aims to empower populations to live healthy lives in complex dynamic environments. DPH generates evidence on effective and sustainable interventions, systems and policies that contribute to protecting health for all, with a focus on vulnerable populations. DPH research addresses both overall population risk and prevention, as well as interventions targeting patients, providers, and communities. (Re-)emerging infections and outbreaks are one of four research ambitions of ITM.
Involved researchers
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Soledad Colombe
Université Libre de Bruxelles
Three different institutes of the Free University of Brussels are participating in the BE-PIN project.
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Spatial Epidemiology Lab
At the Spatial Epidemiology Lab (SpELL, spell.ulb.be), we develop and apply new methodologies to study the effect of spatial factors on the emergence, spread, persistence, and evolution of infectious diseases. The understanding of key spatial factors, such as environmental or anthropogenic variables, and their integration into spatial models is used to predict the geographical distribution of risk, which can contribute to better targeted prevention, surveillance, and control measures. The SpELL has also been involved in a number of ‘service to society’ activities. In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, SpELL academics have for instance conducted frequent outreach activities and actively participated to a number of expert groups (e.g., the Expert Group on the Exit Strategy in the case of Dr Marius Gilbert, and the core team of the SARS-CoV-2 genomic surveillance platform in the case of Dr Simon Dellicour). Besides, the SpELL has recently been involved in the monitoring and analyses of the H3N1 and African swine fever outbreaks that occurred in 2018-19 in northern and southern Belgium, respectively.
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Centre de Recherche en Information et Communication
ReSIC (resic.ltc.ulb.be) is a multidisciplinary research centre at ULB focusing on the vast and complex field of information and communication sciences. In recent years, we have made a dedicated effort to develop the academic field of Science Communication in Belgium through creating bridges between research, education and practice. We have collected a database on the media coverage of COVID-19 in Belgian newspapers (a corpus of >200.000 articles) and identified more than 2000 experts within 120 scientific disciplines. Current analysis includes the role of science in the public debate during the pandemic.
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I3 Health Institute
At the I3h Institute (i3health.eu), as an academic institute, we aim at educating the next generation of healthcare professionals and developing scientific knowledge to efficiently contribute to the development of innovative technologies and strategies. Our vision is to bridge competencies and expertise from various disciplines and foster collaboration to contribute to patient-centred healthcare advances. Our interdisciplinary program in healthcare innovation has welcomed over 750 master or PhD students and post-doctoral researchers from diverse backgrounds. Several members were also involved in expert groups advising the Belgian and European authorities on their COVID management strategy (including through a GEES and GEMS membership)
Involved researchers
Belgian Healthcare Knowledge Centre
The Belgian Health Care Knowledge Centre (KCE) is an independent scientific institution, constituted by the law of 24 December 2002. KCE’s mission is to advise policymakers on decisions relating to health care and health insurance on the basis of scientific and objective research. It is expected to identify and shed light on the best possible solutions, in the context of an accessible, high-quality health care system with due regard for growing demand and budgetary constraints. Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the KCE has been called upon to rapidly provide policy makers with scientific evidence to support their deliberations and strategic decisions in managing the public health crisis. Since the end of the epidemic phase, the KCE, Sciensano and the Superior health Council have been developing a network to promote scientific collaboration during and between health crises. In particular, the KCE is developing a structured framework to define the priority infectious diseases to be targeted and the pharmaceutical products to be stockpiled, with the aim of improving national preparedness for future major health crises. Sciensano will contribute to the definition of priority threats and pathogens. In the same spirit of collaboration, the development of a multidisciplinary and collaborative intelligence network will be led by Sciensano and supported by the KCE to address future pandemic and epidemic risks with better access to data, improved analytical capabilities and better tools and knowledge for decision making and communication.
KCE has extensive experience in systematic literature review, survey research, stakeholder engagement and published process notes for each of these activities. Several complex studies involving all these methods have been successfully carried out and have led to significant reforms in the organisation, financing and legislation of health care in Belgium. A study is currently underway to examine how our health system is (or could be) better prepared to deal with victims of potential chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear and/or explosive (CBRNe) threats. The same methods will be mobilised to formulate possible guidelines on the organisational aspects of the Belgian health system's response to CBRNe events.
Involved researchers
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Frank Hulstaert
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Justien Cornelis
KU Leuven / IDEWE
Lode Godderis is Full Professor Occupational Medicine and Toxicology at the Faculty of Medicine at KU Leuven. He is also Head of Division Occupational and Environmental Hygiene. His research, which is linked to the research unit ‘Environment and Health’, focuses on the impact of work on health by unravelling the underlying mechanism and the reverse: how health can affect work (dis)ability. Prof. Godderis is a member of the division of the Laboratory of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene, which analyses air samples and biological samples of workers. He is also CEO at IDEWE, the biggest Belgian External Service for Prevention and Protection at Work. prof. Godderis is involved in a leading role in several international projects such as, SC1-BHC-28-2019 Exposome Project for Health and Occupational Research (EPHOR) and HBM4EU Science and Policy for a Healthy Future (https://hbm4eu.eu/). He is also the current chair of Modernet, an international network for development of techniques for discovering trends in work-related diseases and tracing new and emerging risks. Lastly, prof. Godderis is also a management committee member of EU COST action Omega-Net.
Involved researchers
