FUNDACION PARA LA INVESTIGACION BIOMEDICA DEL HOSPITAL UNIVERSIATRIO LA PAZ

Their core work

FIBHULP is the biomedical research foundation of Hospital Universitario La Paz, one of Spain's largest public hospitals in Madrid. They provide clinical trial sites, patient cohorts, and hospital-based research infrastructure to European health consortia. Their work spans infectious disease response (COVID-19, tuberculosis), chronic conditions (kidney disease, cardiovascular disease, atrial fibrillation), and rare diseases. They primarily contribute as a third-party clinical partner, bringing real-world hospital data and patient access to multi-center European studies.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

In their earlier H2020 period (2017–2019), FIBHULP focused on specific clinical conditions — bone regeneration with stem cells (ORTHOUNION), chronic kidney disease and peritoneal dialysis (IMPROVE-PD), and antimicrobial resistance (qMAR). From 2020 onward, their portfolio pivoted sharply toward pandemic response and large-scale European health infrastructure, joining multiple COVID-19 consortia (CARE, EU-RESPONSE, VACCELERATE) and rare disease networks (ERICA). This shift reflects a hospital research foundation that moved from niche clinical studies to playing a role in continent-wide health emergency and disease network coordination.

FIBHULP is increasingly positioned as a clinical trial site and data provider for large-scale European health platforms, particularly in infectious disease preparedness and rare disease networks.

How they like to work

FIBHULP overwhelmingly operates as a third-party contributor (10 of 12 projects), meaning they provide specific clinical expertise, patient data, or trial sites to large consortia without being a formal consortium member. They have led only 2 smaller projects as coordinator (qMAR and CareInTrials, both under EUR 165K). With 207 unique partners across 30 countries, their network is exceptionally broad but shallow — they plug into many different consortia rather than building deep repeated partnerships.

Connected to 207 unique partners across 30 countries, reflecting their role as a clinical site recruited into large pan-European health consortia. Their reach is wide but driven by the large project networks they join rather than by bilateral partnerships they initiate.

What sets them apart

FIBHULP brings something most research institutes cannot: direct access to a major Spanish university hospital's patient populations, clinical data, and trial infrastructure. This makes them a valuable third-party clinical site for any European health consortium needing Spanish patient cohorts or multi-center trial validation. Their dual experience in both disease-specific clinical research and large pandemic-response platforms means they can contribute to projects ranging from niche therapeutic development to continent-wide health emergency coordination.

Highlights from their portfolio

• VACCELERATE
  Part of the EU's flagship COVID-19 vaccine trial acceleration platform, demonstrating FIBHULP's role in pandemic-scale clinical infrastructure.
• CareInTrials
  One of only two projects they coordinated, uniquely combining research ethics and empirical philosophy in youth clinical trials.
• ERA4TB
  Long-running (2020–2026) tuberculosis regimen accelerator, showing sustained engagement in infectious disease drug development beyond COVID-19.