KLINIKA ZA INFEKTIVNE BOLESTI DR. FRAN MIHALJEVIC

Their core work

Croatia's leading infectious disease hospital and clinical research centre, based in Zagreb. They bring frontline clinical expertise to European research consortia — from managing HIV patient cohorts and piloting mHealth interventions to conducting antimicrobial resistance surveillance using next-generation sequencing. Their value lies in combining active patient care with research capability, providing real-world clinical data and trial sites that purely academic partners cannot offer.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

Their early H2020 work (2015–2020) focused on digital health for chronic infectious disease management — specifically mHealth tools for HIV patients, health technology assessment, and patient empowerment through co-design. From 2020 onward, their focus shifted decisively toward antimicrobial resistance, genomic surveillance, and pandemic preparedness infrastructure. This mirrors the broader European research pivot triggered by the AMR crisis and COVID-19, suggesting the clinic adapted its research agenda to match the most pressing public health threats.

Moving toward large-scale European clinical research networks for infectious disease preparedness — expect continued involvement in AMR genomics and pandemic readiness consortia.

How they like to work

Exclusively a participant — they have never coordinated an H2020 project, which is typical for a specialist clinical centre contributing patient data, trial sites, and domain expertise rather than managing large consortia. With 38 unique partners across 10 countries, they join mid-to-large consortia and appear to be a trusted clinical node that different research networks draw upon. This makes them a reliable, low-friction partner for coordinators who need a clinical site in Southeast Europe.

Connected to 38 unique partners across 10 countries, indicating solid European integration for a Croatian clinical institution. Their network spans Western and Eastern Europe, positioning them as a bridge for clinical research in the Southeast European region.

What sets them apart

As Croatia's principal infectious disease hospital, they offer something rare in EU consortia: a specialist clinical facility that combines active patient care with research capacity in a Widening country. For consortium builders, this means access to a real-world clinical site with diverse patient populations, genomic surveillance capability, and geographic coverage in a part of Europe often underrepresented in clinical research networks. Their dual focus on AMR surveillance and outbreak preparedness makes them particularly relevant for post-pandemic research calls.

Highlights from their portfolio

• ECRAID-Base
  Their largest project (EUR 410K) — part of the European Clinical Research Alliance on Infectious Diseases, a continent-wide infrastructure for rapid outbreak response.
• AmReSu
  A Widening Participation project that brought next-generation sequencing and AMR surveillance capabilities to Croatian clinical research, building new genomic capacity.
• EmERGE
  Five-year project evaluating mobile health technology for HIV self-management — an early and sustained investment in digital health for chronic infectious diseases.