Projeto Portugal 2020

The present proposal is based on two related activities: (i) consolidate and reinforce the infrastructure of the Clinical Academic Center-Braga (2CA-Braga), created by UMinho/HB, (ii) strengthen and increase the critical mass and number of players involved in clinical research, expanding the users base and their presence in the R&D community in the region. Clinical academic (medical) centers are –in industrialized societies– at the core of the health system, as they care for the most challenging patients and/or pathologies, train doctors and researchers into clinically-based scientific research, and, importantly, nurture clinical innovation promoting the discovery, development and validation of new treatments, solutions and products. In the USA alone, a 2008 study by the Association of American Medical Colleges evidenced that the combined economic impact of the nation’s clinical academic centers exceeded $500 billion, with these responsible for the creation of more than 3 million full