New European preventive medicine network for prevention of chronic diseases

The Leibniz Institute for Prevention Research and Epidemiology - BIPS is a member of a new network of 32 universities and institutions across Europe to help prevent diseases such as cancer, heart disease, lung disease, diabetes and mental illness, led by Oxford Brookes University.

The European Commission (EC) is providing more than 480,000 Euro in funding to support the launch of the Science for Prevention Academic Network (SPAN). The network will enable an international group of prevention scientists based across Europe to build a new wide-reaching field of scientific expertise to help prevent non-communicable diseases.

According to Dr. Antje Hebestreit, head of the unit ‘Lifestyle related disorders’ and contact person for the SPAN project in BIPS, the future of prevention science, research and education will be given a tremendous boost by the launch of this international network of experts: “We will build a strong scientific base in this important field and form collaborations which as yet do not exist in this area in Europe.”

“We aim to build science in this area, attract more young scientists to the field and make sure that the latest research is shared across Europe,” added Dr. Hebestreit.

The funding from the European Commission will allow experts from the 32 institutions to conduct an audit of the health prevention sector across the continent, improve education and training, build networks and run workshops with researchers, in particular young researchers.

Further information:
Leibniz Institute for Prevention Research and Epidemiology – BIPS
Dr. Antje Hebestreit
Tel. 0421 218 56849
hebestr@bips.uni-bremen.de