Thirty PhDs to relaunch science and public health in Italy
A 10-year plan worth one and a half million euros to finance thirty research doctorates in as many Italian universities: this is the “30x30” program, presented in Rome, with which Fondazione Lilly, founded over fifty years ago, relaunches its mission. The goal is to “invest in the best Italian talents so that they can lead the transition to a more efficient, equitable and sustainable public system, while at the same time strengthening Italy's role in defining global strategies for public health”.
The five themesFive themes have been chosen: digital innovation and technological transformation; sustainability, economy and financial models; access, equity and organizational reforms; prevention, public health and One Health; partnership, training and internationalization. Each doctorate will be enriched by international collaborations with universities that will be selected also taking advantage of Lilly's multinational presence in the world. This investment aims to respond to a series of structural deficiencies in Italy, starting with gross expenditure on R&D: according to Eurostat, in Italy we are at 1.31% against 2.24% at EU level. The gap also concerns the area of health protection with values just above 0.2% in Italy and between 0.3% and 0.6% in the other main European countries. As well as public health expenditure: 6.7% in Italy against 7.2% in Spain and the UK, 9.1% in France, 10.1% in Germany.
“Young researchers must be able to be protagonists of change, not just spectators. Because only by strengthening the link between research and public decision-making can we build a more effective healthcare system, oriented towards results and people”, explained Federico Villa , General Director of the Lilly Foundation for Italy.
Artificial IntelligenceIn the coming months, the Foundation will announce a collaboration with a global strategic player in the area of artificial intelligence to develop a new tool to support the sharing and agile exchange of information among researchers in the network of 30 national universities. This initiative will also support the processing of research results in the area of health policies.
The Foundation will also continue to work to raise awareness of public research in schools, through a collaboration with the Ministry of Education and Merit, creating an awareness plan in Italian schools that brings kids closer to the world of research, especially in the health sector. Future plans will also include a real Academy for the continuous training of public employees involved in health, which can involve the Ministry of Health and structure a collaboration with international non-governmental organizations.
In the three-year period 2025–2028, the Foundation’s activities will be guided by a Technical-Scientific Advisory Committee, chaired by Professor Claudio Jommi, and composed of representatives from the academic and institutional world. The Committee will coordinate the launch of the first 20 research doctorates and the definition of agreements with universities, as well as the structuring of collaborations with regulatory bodies and public entities.
Investing in research“Investing today in the training of researchers specialized in health policies means building the foundations for a more efficient, equitable and results-oriented National Health Service,” explained Claudio Jommi, full professor of Business Economics at the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences of the University of Eastern Piedmont and President of the Advisory Committee of the Lilly Foundation.
“PhDs funded by the Lilly Foundation will be able to generate a multiplicative impact: strategic skills for the public system, better allocation decisions, and a concrete contribution to the innovation of evidence-based policies. It is a long-term vision that puts knowledge at the center of change.”
La Repubblica
