New service creates more opportunities to participate in clinical research in Skåne

Skåne University Hospital has launched a new service developed by Clinical Studies Sweden – Forum South. The new service aims to make it easier for all residents of Skåne aged 18 and over to register their interest in participating in clinical research and contributing to the healthcare of the future.

Sweden has lost its leading position in clinical research. The government has therefore set a priority goal to increase the number of clinical studies and the number of participants in them.

Today, the opportunity to participate in clinical research varies depending on where you live and your healthcare provider. To make research more equitable, the service “Register your interest in participating in research” is now being launched, allowing residents of Skåne to easily consent to being contacted by the responsible researcher if there is a clinical study they may qualify for.

Information about the service including a direct link to 1177.se is available at Skåne University Hospital website: Vill du delta i en klinisk studie? [in Swedish] 

– The service has three goals: to offer residents equal opportunities to register their interest in participating in research, to support researchers and companies with feasibility calculations when planning clinical studies, and to facilitate clinics’ work with patient recruitment during the implementation of clinical studies, says Ann Tronde, Clinical Studies Sweden – Forum South, who helped develop the service.

Consent, Feasibility Calculations, and Recruitment

Forum South’s competence center for feasibility calculations offers both industrial and academic sponsors support in planning research projects and patient recruitment. The center performs feasibility calculations based on data from Region Skåne’s healthcare databases on behalf of researchers and companies.

– These feasibility calculations are then matched with consent data from the new service. If there are residents in the consent database who meet the criteria for the current research project, Forum South can generate a list of these residents’ contact details and provide it to the responsible researcher at the relevant clinic, Cecilia Åkesson Kotsaris, project manager, Clinical Studies Sweden – Forum South explains.

The service will be evaluated by June 2026. During this period, a limited number of clinical studies – with both academic and industrial sponsors – will be linked to the service. The hope is to open the service to more studies thereafter.

Vision for the Future

Forum South’s vision and hope is that the service will eventually be available to all residents of Sweden. This would also make patient recruitment and study participation easier across regional borders.

– In the long term, regional competence centers for feasibility calculations could be established in every region. We want to make it easier for more researchers and life science companies to succeed with their studies. Our hope is that the service can eventually be scaled up and become a national resource that strengthens Sweden’s overall ability to conduct clinical trials, says Ann Tronde, Clinical Studies Sweden – Forum South.

– Skåne has a strong tradition of medical research, but to maintain our competitiveness, we must also be able to deliver and carry out studies from start to finish. When more studies are conducted here, more patients in Skåne will have the opportunity to receive the latest medicines and treatments. In addition, collaboration with universities and industry will be strengthened, benefiting the entire healthcare system, says Stefan Jovinge, Skåne University Hospital.

Facts: The ‘Participate in Research’ Service

• Residents aged 18 and over living in Skåne can log in with e-identification on 1177.se and register their interest and contact details
• Those who register may be contacted if there is a suitable study.
• Participation is voluntary and can be withdrawn at any time.
• No medical records are handled – selection is based on Region Skåne’s healthcare databases by specially trained staff.
• The service is run as a project during 2026 and is led by Clinical Studies Sweden – Forum South, a research support unit at Skåne University Hospital.
• www.skane.se/delta-i-forskning

If you have further questions about the service, please contact Clinical Studies Sweden – Forum South, responsible for the development of the service; forumsoder@skane.se.