Last week, ALAMEDA has been invited to take part to the Italian Multiple Sclerosis Foundation (FISM) 2022 Annual Congress.
Every year in May, on the occasion of the National Multiple Sclerosis (MS) Week, the FISM Scientific Congress is organized in Rome (see 2022 programme here). At this appointment, the researchers supported by AISM and its Foundation (FISM) meet to report on the results obtained from the funded research. In addition, research strategies, collaborations and partnerships at national and international level are discussed and new synergies are promoted, thanks to which it is possible to face the important challenges posed by MS.
The title of the 2022 edition of the Congress was “Connecting MS with other neurodegenerative diseases: together we are stronger” which emphasises the importance of tackling the challenges posed by neurodegenerative diseases promoting coordination and collaboration among research groups and initiatives.
On the first day, we have had the chance to listen and learn about several inspiring international and EU initiatives that altogether are striving for putting neurological diseases at the top of the priority agenda of public health and health research by posing the accent on the urgent need for broader partnerships, multi-stakeholder commitment and policy convergence at both national and international level.
The outstanding line-up of speakers included Giselda Scalera, Director of the DG Research & Innovation of the Italian Ministry of Health who spoke about the concept of “sustainable partnerships” in the Italian national research system and how it materialises in the domain of brain sciences through the Italian Neuroscience and Rehabilitation Network (Rete Italiana delle Neuroscienze e della Riabilitazione, RIN), the country’s largest research network in this field which encourages collaboration between recognised Italian Research Hospitals (Istituti di Ricovero e Cura a Carattere Scientifico, IRCCS), facilitate the spread of information on their clinical and scientific activities, supports and facilitates scientific and technological research and training initiatives, as well as the development of joint projects to improve prevention, diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation of specific diseases, with an increasing commitment towards responsible and participatory research models.