After the new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) entered into force July 20, 2018, there are some changes on how data on patients’ health have to be treated. It is not enough to just have ethical approval! It is of course still a prerequisite to get REK approal before you start your project. New is that REK approval does not include the permission to handle personal data. In addition, it is required that you are allowed to personal data according to article 6 and article 9 of the personal data protection law. So you still need to get ethical approval prior to starting your research project, but the institution has the additional responsibility that handling of personal data occurs in accordance to the new regulation.

That means that the foundation to get access to personal data has to be evaluated by the project leader, and has to be included in the ethical approval. This foundation is either consent or dispensation of this consent requirement according to the health research laws. The project leader has to show that the treatment of personal data follow the general principles of the personal data protection regulation, for example definition of aims, minimizing the amount of data, limitation of storage and responsibility.

More internal control responsibility is given. We have to assure that treatment of the personal data is according to the regulations, and perform Data Protection Impact Assessments – DPIA when required.

This means that the responsibilities have in collaboration projects have to be well defined and agreed upon, which is of importance when you want to share patient data with your collaborators, and make written agreements. This is not a new requirement, but of more importance now with the new GDPR.

Both the University of Bergen and Haukeland University Hospital have a Personal Data and Privacy commissioner – Janecke Veim and Christer Kleppe. If you are in doubt if you need an agreement with the hospital, contact Janecke or/and Christer (janecke.veim@uib.no, personvernombudet@helse-bergen.no).

The Norwegian Police Security Services (PST) reported in their threat assessment from January this year: “Norwegian defense and emergency services, state administration, research and development, as well as critical infrastructure are considered to be particularly vulnerable intelligence targets.”

Norway with its location, its alliances and technological level is a much-sought target for foreign intelligence services. We have students, employees and collaborators from countries that receive special attention from PST; one of them is one of our closest neighbors. Some countries instruct their residents to report home when they are in Norway. It is therefore likely that mapping of infrastructure, activities and persons at UiB could inadvertently be a means of further mapping and obtaining desired information.

What does this mean for K2 employees? We must have a constant focus on security. That means looking after your ID-card, do not let in people you do not know just because they happen to be at the door. See to that you have a good and long password (preferably at least 15 characters) and look after your mobile and pc during travels, especially to risk countries like China, Russia and Iran. Many have sensitive information stored on their PCs and USB sticks. Furthermore, be sufficiently suspicious of emails with unusual content and links and test links by placing the mouse over it to see you are not sent to strange and unknown server.

October is the security awareness month at UiB and more information about safety and measures will soon be distributed. This includes e-learning for all employees on IT security. The course will be sent from Xtramile on 2 October. There will also be focus on use and care of your ID-card. Remember that it is personal and must be worn visible at all times.

Travel will also be a focus area, and you can find detailed travelling advise at Sikresiden.no (uib.no/sikresiden). UiB is launching a loan service for PCs and mobiles to employees travelling to risk countries. You can read more about the October security month on UiB’s pages, but remember that focus on security do not apply only to October..

With a wish for a safe weekend

Eystein
Acting Head of Department

The latest information we have received from the research council of Norway, suggests that they will drastically change their funding application system including; changing the organization of calls, templates, evaluation process, dates, etc. Before full implementation of the new systems, the 10 October will be the last deadline using the current system for new commercial proof-of-concept projects. If you have research results with commercial potential but have unresolved questions and uncertainties that are preventing the project from moving forward in the commercialization process, this program could be relevant. What is important to keep in mind is that proof-of-concept projects should not be research-driven but rather business-driven.

The announcement is divided into two parts. If you have a project requiring rapid clarification of the most critical milestones where positive results can lay the foundation for a standard commercialization project, then a milestone project could be a more appropriate alternative. A milestone project lasts up to a maximum of 1 year with a more limited scope. Projects seeking up to NOK 500 000 will automatically be assessed as milestone projects.

You can also attend the Idea Competition presented by Sparebanken Vest and BTO and win 500 000 NOK to further develop a promising commercial idea. In 2016, the competition was won by Professor Kamal Mustafa from the Department of Clinical Dentistry for his research on reconstruction of human bones.

I will act as Head of Department for the next 6 months in Pål Njølstad’s absence. Emmet McCormack will be my deputy, while Silke Appel and Jone Trovik continue in their roles as Vice Heads for research and teaching, respectively. The administrative team and I will do our best to solve the tasks ahead of us in a good way.

One of the issues we are working with is the strategy plan. The existing plan expires at the end of the year, but we have now extended it for one year to get more time to work out a new one. In March we will invite to whole institute to a retreat at Solstrand as a substitute for next year’s strategy seminar and institute day. The new strategic plan will be a central theme at the retreat. External funding will be a key issue for discussions. Another point is the allocation of positions. The legislative changes that reduce our opportunity to hire persons temporary will give the department challenges over time, but I am confident that we will manage to solve these issues in a good way together.

Finally, I wish all our talented employees good luck with the applications to Helse-Vest.

Eystein

The Sabbath (from Hebrew (שבת) means ceasing and was first used in bible context for the seventh day of creation. It is a religious day for rest, worship, party and / or activities within several religions. Sabbatical year or more precise named research term, is a good thing for academics. For many years, the universities have had this as a strategic asset because the knowledge society is international. Internationalization and stronger contact with international academic communities contribute to raising the quality of research and education. Research term is possible for permanent employed professors after six years of earning (in 100% position), allowing them to take their families abroad for a year, giving a great opportunity for new knowledge and new networks. The social dimension is also important by the ability to meet a new culture, make new friends, and come closer together as a family.

Research term abroad is strongly recommended for all permanent professors. Because the value of the university is so great, foreign stays should be a requirement for professor competence. There can of course be social reasons why this is difficult to implement. There is actually another interesting opportunity: What about spending the research term at the Center for Advanced Study in Oslo? Here you will find offices, meeting rooms and more for you and researchers you want to associate with you from home and abroad. The Center was created by the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters. Every year there are hosts for three research groups. On the basis of proposals received, the groups are selected by the board after group leaders, proposed international partners and the projects have been through international evaluation. The Center will strengthen basic research and provide close collaboration between Norwegian and foreign researchers. The budget for each research group is 3.5 million NOK for project costs, scholarships, free purchases of foreign researchers, as well as housing, travel, conference and seminar expenses. The application deadline is mid-January 2019 for the academic year 2020-21.

I have had a research term in Boston at the Harvard Medical School in Boston and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in addition to being a postdoc at the University of Chicago. These stays have been central to my career as researcher plus that it has actually been very fun. Soon, I will go to Boston for a new stay at the Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, this time for six months. Eystein Husebye will be Acting Head of Department, thank you very much for that. See you all nest Spring!

Only a few weeks after my first published article I received an invitation in my email-inbox to present at an international congress. Imagine; the big scientific community wanted to hear more about my amazing research! Very flattering for a (not quite) young but still junior PhD fellow. Luckily, I had a supervisor who quickly grounded and explained that this was not an invitation as a lecturer with covered travel and stay expenses but a, for her, totally unknown congress/organization so the invitation was relocated in the spam bin. But thereafter still more and diverse variants of inquiries are being delivered: publish articles, write book chapters and immediately be appointed as co- or chief -editor!

It is not only me who receives such inquiries; The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists has conducted thorough investigative journalism by their “Fake Science”-project and thoroughly documented methodology and findings in Aftenposten’s Weekly magazine last Saturday. Researchers are fooled to pay for “Open Access” (principally great that science is widely available) but not in junk journal without thorough peer review and quality assurance! If the results have been published in such a substandard “predator” journal these results may never be published in a proper scientific journal and all the hard work is wasted/worthless. And to attend a congress to present and discuss hard-earned findings to realize that the whole conference is a small room where the other speakers either do not show up (they have already received their proof of participation) or present completely different disciplines than yours (computer algorithms, cognitive psychology, literary science and packaging technology in the same session) make participation completely scientifically worthless and time & money is completely wasted.

Here are some suggestions on how to avoid being caught by predator journals/ congresses:

– Ask  your supervisor / a senior scientist or clinical colleagues. Is this a magazine / congress / congress organizer they are familiar with? It is rare to be invited to an international lecture without knowing the invitees. Additionally, it is typical that there is nothing about coverage of travel and stay.

Check the magazine / organizer’s website:

-Are the names of the editorial board stated? Are these familiar in your field of expertise’s international/national environment? I checked the organizer of Congress of Cancer diagnosis & treatment hosted in Oslo the 2nd-3rd of August 2018; not a single Norwegian co-organizer, and not one scientist I had ever heard of. Searching through PubMed I found little correspondence between the named scientists and their specified workplaces. These were definitely not renowned scientists!

-Does the journal have information about its bibliography? E.g. which databases it is indexed in.

-Avoid these organizers: WASET, OMICS, Sciencedomain and Bioevents.

-Be are aware of names that are almost entirely similar to a journal you actually know: The International Journal of your field, may be named Journal of International your field or International Clinical & Research in your field.

To avoid violation of publication ethics: This has formerly been published as a commentary in På Høyden, 21^stof August 2018.

This summer, we received the great news that Randi Bertelsen was awarded an ERC Starting Grant (K2-News week 33). In addition to obtaining a solid economical basis to build her own research and become a principal investigator, Randi’s grant acknowledges the quality of the research community she is a part of, our department and The Faculty of Medicine.

Funds from The European Union, The Norwegian Research council, The Norwegian Cancer Society, and other funding bodies, as well as our production of publications and candidates, provides the bread and butter for K2. In addition, external funding is necessary in order for investigators to conduct experimental research at all. Grants are also an important parameter when assessing applications for positions and other resources – and it will be even more important in the future.

The parable of talents (Matthew 25) is probably known to most of you; “For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away”. It may seem unfair, but the parable is applicable to research funding. The road is always steepest in the beginning. For a young person or young environment it can be difficult to obtain the most competitive grants like the FRIPRO program of The Norwegian Research Council. Perhaps a better strategy is to apply more low-hanging fruits like The Regional Health Authorities of Western Norway grant program, Health and Rehabilitation programs or funds aimed at specific disease groups or treatments.

K2 and the faculty have worked systematically in recent years to improve applications and grant success rates. We have employed research advisors and built up internal procedures for application assessment and budgeting. Weekly overviews of grant opportunities are published in K2-Nytt. All these efforts are to make it easier for you to apply.

The next big opportunity is the Helse-Vest call ending on 15 September. Read the call and submit your application, so that you can get return on your talents.

Good luck

Eystein
Vice head of department

I hope everyone has had a nice holiday returning with the batteries reloaded.

At the time of writing, the students have already begun, and many K2 employees are fully occupied with teaching. It is often busy getting started after the holiday. Switching from a hopefully quiet vacation to a hectic university life takes some time. New students means some more work at the start. Research never rests. Although many have picked up email and delt with the most urgent, most have probably a lot of outstanding tasks that now need to be sorted out.

So most people do not start the autumn term with empty baskets. Nevertheless, there may be reason to look into the next six months with new eyes. The new study plan has meant that many have had to change the organization of teaching, but has the content been changed accordingly? Can it be improved and made easier and more accessible? The fall is time for scientific meetings with professional refills and interaction with other researchers. Can this opportunity be used to define new research questions and research projects so that you are better prepared when the deadlines for applying for research funding come next spring?

Autumn is a nice time with many new opportunities. Grab these. Good luck with a new term.

Pål

Dear all

The end of spring semester is approaching and along come the tasks of mid-term PhD evaluations as well as student (bachelor/master) theses evaluations. Exams have hopefully been prepared, ready to release but censoring awaits. The 20^th of June is the coming full-scale OSCE; 160 6^th semester students going through skill stations. We wish you the best taking care of this task and thanks to all contributors!

Producing written or OSCE exams, sitting though evaluations and performing censoring is not visualized in the educational schedule (as opposed to lectures), but this work is not less important! The students’ studying will often be guided by (former) exams. Thus it is important to develop tasks/questions considered of high importance for what the students really need to learn to perform in their future roles as pharmacist, doctors, nutritionists, molecular biologists or whatever field you as K2 teacher is responsible for.

And do not forget: note all your exam/evaluation work in your teaching portfolio that you have easily available at your computer. This to ensure documentation of your contribution in this part of your academic/teaching position.

And finally; when all evaluations are finished for this semester: enjoy summer without educational responsibilities.

It is not only the sunny days we can be happy about these days: 4 of 6 awards of the Medical faculty go to researchers/environments at K2! Mari Kyllesø Halle gets the award for the PhD thesis of the year for her thesis “Molecular alterations suggesting new treatment strategies in uterine carcinomas”, The Academic Quality Award (Studiekvalitetsprisen) goes to FARM295 Pharmaceutics (Galenisk farmasi) with course responsible Emmet McCormack, Gottfried Greve gets The Internationalization of Education Award (Pris for internasjonalisering i studiene) for his efforts in MED9, and Rebecca Cox and Kristin Greve-Isdahl Mohn are awarded the Dissemination award of the year for their contributions to the vaccine debate. The awards of the Medical faculty will be handed out at the Faculty day June 14th 2018 10.00-13.00 at Haukeland University Hospital, Main Auditorium. Congratulations to all of you!

So far I have not gotten any input regarding thematic area you consider important for future-oriented research that Pål wrote about in K2Nytt week 19. You still have today to come with suggestions (deadline is 1.6.), so take this opportunity to influence the future of K2!

Best regards,

Silke

FHU/ RUHS (Forskningsenhet for helseundersøkelser/ Research Unit for Health Surveys) www.uib.no/nb/fhu , www.uib.no/en/ruhs is a new core facility at K2 that was officially opened in November 2017. The aim is to undertake clinical health surveys. (Projects that need hospital facilities for the participants are performed at Haukeland University Hospital.) FHU is a collaboration between the University of Bergen and Haukeland University hospital, anchored at K2, and has received funding for establishment from the Bergen Research Foundation. Until now FHU has performed approximately 400 investigations in persons participating in the projects Psorax35 (PI Steinar Kåre Tveit) and the Carbfunc (PI Simon Dankel). We are about to start the large HUSK3 study (PI Eva Gerdts), and we are finalizing the plans for the RHINESSA 4^th generation study (PI Cecilie Svanes) that will start after the summer. These projects cover a broad spectrum of research, addressing psoriasis, obesity, cardiology and respiratory health; and different study designs such as intervention and population based studies.

FHU/ RUHS has since the opening November 2017 needed a booking system, in order to allocate dates, personnel and equipment to the participants in the research projects undertaken at the facility. The University of Bergen has since 2015 been trying to provide a booking system for its core facilities. FHU, supported by Per Bruvold at Innkjøpsavdelingen, initiated a bidding process in November 2017. Four different systems applied, two of them were assessed for further consideration, and the system EasyTrial (https://www.easytrial.net ) has been selected. EasyTrial is an online Clinical Trial Management and Electronic Data Capture System for administration of clinical trial tasks (operational and logistical). It includes a calendar and appointment system to manage correspondence with participants and allocate human resources and equipment. The system is based in Denmark, and has been used in Sweden, Germany, Portugal, England and USA. It has also been used by the Norwegian Cancer Registry. EasyTrial is compliant with good clinical practice (GCP), 21 CFR Part 11, EU GDPR and database security legislation. For those who might be interested a representative for EasyTrial will present this system at the FHU localities in Haukelandsbakken 45 June 8^th. You may contact study nurse Linda Tveit to participate.

You are welcome to contact me in the case that you want to discuss performing studies at FHU /RUHS.

Since being asked by Pål to fulfil the position of vice-head for innovation for K2, I have been wondering exactly what it is I should do? And indeed, what is the relevance of “innovation” to our research programs? These might seem very obvious questions with obvious answers, but apart from filling in the sections asking for innovative potential on our grant applications, how many of us truly pay any serious attention to the true innovation of what we do? How important is all this “innovation stuff?”

If I google “innovation”, the first hit I get is a dictionary definition:

Innovation
ɪnəˈveɪʃ(ə)n/
noun
noun: innovation

1. the action or process of innovating.

However, most critically is the example of its use;
“innovation is crucial to the continuing success of any organization”.

All research groups have their research questions they want to get funded and want to explore, but maybe fail to realize the innovative potential of their scientific endeavors. However, truly wanting to make meaning from research is the first step towards innovation. When you decide upon the type of meaning you make, try to find 2 or 3 words that describe why that meaning (innovation) should exist. Do your processes, methodologies or philosophies follow a well-worn path, or are they paradigm shifting? Great innovation and research jumps the curve, thereby creating progress. It certainly requires rolling of the dice, but no risk, no reward. You may not achieve perfection, but jumping the curve in research and creating revolutionary innovation will always result in some bugs. It is safe to continue in current practices, to tick the boxes, dot the i´s and cross the t´s on our research applications. However, not only is there very little fun in that, but more and more you will not be rewarded for it.

Recently, in collaboration with BTO we highlighted the various different funding avenues for innovation. However, even charitable organisations in their application processes are asking “is there any innovative potential?”. Furthermore, with reduced basic funding to university (grunnbevilgningen) from the government in recent years, there is an increased focus on funding our research activities from external sources of finance, particularly BOA (bidrag og oppdragsaktivitet) funding, which demands innovative potential. At the start of the piece I asked the question “how important is innovation”, the answer is clear, its critical. Critical to development of your research, the training of young investigators and their futures, and to the continuing success of K2.