The start of PREPARE
In February 2014, the European Commission funded PREPARE*, an ambitious project conducted from 2014 to 2021 that aimed to create an harmonised European clinical research framework to be better prepared in the event of severe infectious disease outbreaks.
In January 2020, with the emergence of SARS-CoV-2, PREPARE’s clinical research infrastructure and operational network was tested in real time. The EU-funded RECOVER* project was quickly established to respond to the pandemic and involved multidisciplinary collaborations across different EU countries. This project ran from March 2020 to August 2023.
Time to evaluate
Two years after the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, we evaluated the PREPARE and RECOVER projects to dive deeper into what went well, what went wrong and what could be improved for the next time a pandemic would arise.
The evaluation was based on interviews of 45 stakeholders in order to cover outbreak response decision-makers, PREPARE/RECOVER work package leads, key researchers, project and data managers and policy makers. This evaluation also included the laboratory network LAB-Net.
Lessons learned
We all had to increase our efforts when PREPARE and RECOVER were put to the test during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The time invested during the PREPARE project paid off. It made it possible to quickly shift existing clinical studies and build new ones, using the current infrastructure and network. These efforts allowed the rapid recruitment of patients at the early stage of the pandemic.
However, this evaluation showed that to put in place a rapid and efficient response, it is necessary to engage all stakeholders in a coordinated manner.
What about LAB-Net during the COVID-19 pandemic?
Because a fast and efficient response is needed during a pandemic, it is essential that the diagnostic laboratories are ready to support research activities.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, LAB-Net was involved in the clinical research activities. These are our lessons learned:
1. Rapid creation and distribution of COVID-19 diagnostic
When COVID-19 emerged, there were no existing diagnostic tests. In-house diagnostic tests were created at the early stage of the pandemic, thanks to the efforts deployed by experts in our laboratory network. Once ready, LAB-Net took over the logistics and coordination to prepare the material needed for the COVID-19 studies and shipped it to the different clinical sites across Europe.
However, not all laboratories of the network were aware that this in-house developed test were available, and waited for the commercial diagnostic kits. Next time, we will focus on a better communication towards the labs to save time.
2. Laboratories were overwhelmed
The routine diagnostic laboratories were overwhelmed with all of the work that needed to be done. This was also the case for the microbiological laboratories, who were dealing with an influx in testing and diagnosing patients. Therefore, there was only a limited capacity left to engage in research activities.
A fast scaling up of the laboratories was necessary. Not every lab had the confidence or knowledge to do so. The LAB-Net team dedicated their time to train the current staff or help them hire new team members.
LAB-Net made a shift from routine COVID-19 diagnostic services to full research support. Now, we are able to spot and resolve issues faster, and communicate them clearly to all labs off.
3. The importance of being involved from the beginning
The diagnostic labs in our network could not be involved from the early stage of the pandemic in supporting clinical studies. Due to this, we were not able to share our expertise on how to setup and coordinate studies within our network of laboratories.
When involved in an earlier stage, we can improve the preparedness of all labs. We can give a more rapid response to disease outbreaks. In addition, it would enhance the engagement of the labs that work within LAB-Net, even before an outbreak emerges.
Communication is key
As you can gather from this, communication is key during a pandemic. We are always willing to learn and improve, if you have any feedback to share, contact us via lab-net@uantwerpen.be.
Background information
* PREPARE = Platform for European Preparedness Against (Re-)emerging Epidemics
* RECOVER = Rapid European COVID-19 Emergency Response Research
More information on www.prepare-europe.eu and www.recover-europe.eu