(September 20, 2017) - Dr. Brian Booth, lead researcher in the CAD WALK project, was invited to speak today at the Expert Group Antwerp Molecular Imaging (EGAMI) workshop at the University of Antwerp. EGAMI is a multi-disciplinary group at the University of Antwerp whose goal is to enable the translation of molecular imaging research into industrial applications. It is hoped that by enabling this research translation, EGAMI will help improve clinical diagnoses and patient health.
The topic of the workshop was "The Impact of Imaging Research" and the invited speakers introduced various avenues that can increase research impact. The most commonly-mentioned themes included valorisation (the translation of research into products and services) and public outreach. Speakers also discussed various funding opportunities that encourage these activities.
"The EU's Marie Curie Actions strongly encourage the transfer of research into products", says Booth. "They do so by requiring their projects to have an international, inter-sector, and interdisciplinary focus. In that way, CAD WALK is a decent example of how this can be done. That being said, the valorisation aspect of CAD WALK has yet to begin, so my advice is pretty limited there".
While Dr. Booth had little to add on the topic of valorisation, he was more adamant about the need for researchers to increase public outreach efforts. "It is hard to get the average person to support what you do if they don't know who you are, don't feel that you care about them, and don't see the effort that you're putting in", says Booth. "We have to make a better effort to be accessible, transparent, and understandable".
Dr. Booth's EGAMI Presentation
The EGAMI Website (University of Antwerp)
