Application for 'Research-Centered Hospital' Certification Open Until 29th Next Month... Briefing Session on 4th

Seoul National University Hospital and 9 Other Existing Sites Transition from Designation System to Certification System

The Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Korea Health Industry Development Institute will announce the 'Research-Centered Hospital Certification Plan' on the 1st of next month and will accept certification applications from medical institutions with excellent research capabilities until the 29th.

'Research-centered hospitals' were introduced in 2013 to organically link basic research and clinical research based on the clinical capabilities of hospitals and to increase the productivity of research and development. The Ministry of Health and Welfare has designated 10 research-centered hospitals, including Kyungpook National University Hospital, Korea University Guro Hospital, Korea University Anam Hospital, Gil Hospital, Bundang CHA Hospital, Samsung Seoul Hospital, Seoul National University Hospital, Asan Medical Center, Severance Hospital, and Ajou University Hospital, and has conducted re-designation evaluations every three years.

However, as the demand for hospital participation in research and development has increased due to changes in the medical environment and advances in biohealth technology, there have been criticisms that the limited designation system has limitations in expanding the base of research-centered hospitals. Accordingly, the government amended the 'Health and Medical Technology Promotion Act' and changed the previously implemented designation system to a certification system to spread a hospital-centered research culture.

The eligible applicants for research-centered hospital certification are general hospitals, tertiary general hospitals, specialized hospitals, dental hospitals, and Korean medicine hospitals under the Medical Service Act. They will be evaluated on whether they meet the standards set by law, including the hospital's basic capabilities such as research organization, research personnel, research facilities and equipment necessary for conducting research, research performance over the past three years, and future research and operation plans.

The Ministry of Health and Welfare will first conduct a basic research capability evaluation (Stage 1) based on the materials submitted by medical institutions, and then conduct a quality evaluation of research capabilities (Stage 2) for medical institutions that meet the criteria (Pass).

Hospitals that pass the final certification criteria will hold the status of research-centered hospitals and qualify to apply for the 'Research-Centered Hospital Fostering R&D' project, with the certification valid for three years.

Medical institutions wishing to apply for research-centered hospital certification should attach documents on research organization and research personnel status along with supporting materials to the certification application form and submit them in person to the Korea Health Industry Development Institute (Namsan Square Building, 60-1 Chungmuro 3-ga, Jung-gu, Seoul) by the 29th of next month. The Ministry of Health and Welfare plans to hold an explanatory session on the details of the certification evaluation at EL Tower in Yangjae-dong, Seoul, on November 4th.

Jung Eun-young, Director of the Health Industry Policy Bureau at the Ministry of Health and Welfare, stated, "Through the research-centered hospital certification system, we expect to establish a culture of research hospitals and create an opportunity for hospitals to become the center of the health and medical research ecosystem that connects basic research, clinical research, and technology commercialization."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.