RÖL Support Services & Research Infrastructures (including ORU-RÖL)

Region Örebro Län (RÖL) offers a wide range of research support services, specialist expertise, and research infrastructure that can support health-related research projects. These resources include assistance with study design, ethics and regulatory applications, clinical studies, biobanking, data management, statistical analysis, molecular and cell biological analyses, genomics, health economics, and patient involvement. In addition, several key research infrastructures are jointly operated by RÖL and Örebro University (ORU), providing researchers with access to advanced facilities, technologies, and expertise.

Researchers planning to collaborate with RÖL are encouraged to explore the resources below and engage with relevant support functions early in the project planning process, particularly when developing project budgets. Please note that some research infrastructures are jointly managed by ORU and RÖL. Where these infrastructures contribute to a project, certain costs will need to be allocated between the two organisations. Further information on budgeting and cost allocation can be found in the Declaring EU costs correctly section.

The sections below provide an overview of the research support functions and research infrastructures available across ORU and RÖL.

The Unit for Clinical Studies (EKS) at RÖL supports researchers and companies in planning, conducting, and managing clinical studies, including pharmaceutical and medical technology trials. Support is available throughout the study lifecycle, from applications and contracts to implementation, monitoring, and quality assurance.

Services include:

Clinical trials: Support with study planning, implementation, project management, monitoring, auditing, and applications related to medical products and clinical trials. Information: Kliniska prövningar • regionorebrolan.se
CTIS and medical product applications: Assistance with preparing and reviewing applications in the Clinical Trials Information System (CTIS). Information: Ansökan till Läkemedelsverket • regionorebrolan.se
Ethics applications: Support with ethics applications for both clinical trials and other research studies, including assistance with the submission process. Information: Ansökan till Etikprövningsmyndigheten • regionorebrolan.se
Contract negotiations and costing: Assistance with study budgets, cost calculations, and contract negotiations. Information: Avtalsförhandling • regionorebrolan.se
Research nurse support: Access to research nurses who can participate in and support research projects. Information: Forskningssjuksköterskor • regionorebrolan.se
Monitoring and auditing: Monitoring and quality assurance services for national and international clinical studies. Information: Monitorering och audit • regionorebrolan.se

The Center for Experimental and Biomedical Imaging (CEBIO) is a joint facility operated by RÖL and ORU. CEBIO has a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanner that enables advanced examinations of the brain and other parts of the body, allowing analyses of both structure and function. Experienced staff at the facility conduct the examinations and can help design your study and analyse the data. For more information and contact details: CEBIO - Center for Experimental and Biomedical Imaging in Örebro • regionorebrolan.se

Clinical Genomics Örebro/The Unit for Clinical Genomics is a joint facility operated by RÖL and ORU and is the local node of SciLifeLab’s Clinical Genomics platform. The unit develops and implements advanced diagnostic methods for healthcare and supports translational genomics projects. For more information and contact details: Clinical Genomics Örebro - SciLifeLab

Genomic Medical Centre Örebro is a joint facility operated by RÖL and ORU and is part of Genomic Medicine Sweden. The centre supports the clinical implementation of precision medicine through individualised diagnostics, care, and therapeutic strategies using high-throughput sequencing and genomic analysis. For more information and contact details: GMC Örebro | Genomic Medicine Sweden

Precision Medicine Centre Örebro is a joint initiative between RÖL and ORU that aims to accelerate the translation of precision medicine into clinical practice. For more information and contact details: Precisionsmedicinskt centrum Örebro, PMCÖ • regionorebrolan.se

The Clinical Research Laboratory at RÖL supports research studies by aliquoting, storing, and registering samples for biobanking. It also provides support with experimental setup and sample analysis, including analyses of DNA, RNA, proteins, metabolites, cells, and tissue, as well as various histological analyses. For more information and contact details: Laboratorium Forskningsavdelning Campus USÖ • regionorebrolan.se

The Laboratory for Motion Analysis at RÖL provides equipment for quantifying movement in various ways. The equipment is used in research projects addressing biomechanical questions, for example, analyses relating to various disabilities and diseases, trunk and arm movement, balance, and hand-eye coordination. For more information and contact details: Laboratorium för rörelseanalys • regionorebrolan.se

The Laboratory Medicine Clinic at RÖL conducts activities in bacteriology, virology, immunology, clinical chemistry, transfusion medicine, including therapeutic plasmapheresis, pharmacology, pathology, cytology, and molecular genetics. For more information and contact details: Laboratoriemedicin, verksamhetsområde • Vårdgivare Region Örebro län

The Unit for Advanced Therapy Medicinal Products at RÖL offers cleanrooms, including Classes B and C and clean zones with Class A conditions, as well as expertise in manufacturing advanced therapy medicinal products (ATMPs). Its personnel are trained in Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) and can assist with risk analysis, validation, applications to the Swedish Medical Products Agency, and pharmaceutical manufacturing. For more information and contact details: ATMP-faciliteter • regionorebrolan.se

The Unit for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics at RÖL provides support with study design, statistical analyses, including descriptive statistics, biostatistical analyses, and group-level comparisons, power calculations, database establishment and linkage, register extraction, variable creation, and data cleaning. For more information and contact details: Epidemiologi och biostatistik • regionorebrolan.se

Örebro Biobank (IVO registration number 454) is a joint facility operated by RÖL and ORU. The biobank provides regulatory advice and operational support for biobanking activities, including the collection, processing, storage, management, and distribution of biological samples for research and healthcare.

For more information and contact details: Biobank • regionorebrolan.se | Örebro Biobank - Institutionen för medicinska vetenskaper - Örebro universitet

If your project involves collecting and storing biological samples

If your project includes the collection and storage of biological samples, Örebro Biobank should be consulted before the ethics application is submitted. The biobank can advise on the design of the biobank-related aspects of the application, including participant information and consent materials, and can review the application from a biobank perspective.

As the Swedish Ethical Review Authority does not assess compliance with the Biobanks Act, early consultation with the biobank may help avoid the need for amendments later in the project.

For more information and contact details: Biobank • regionorebrolan.se

If your project involves transferring samples to another organisation

If biological samples are to be sent outside the research principal (RÖL) for activities such as analysis, processing, or reformatting, either within Sweden or internationally, a Material Transfer Agreement (MTA) must be established.

The MTA defines the responsibilities of each party regarding the samples and any associated sample codes, and sets out how the samples must be handled, returned, or disposed of once the agreed work has been completed.

The University Health Care Research Center (UFC) at RÖL provides support throughout the research process, including project planning, study design, data collection, supervision, and other methodological issues. Areas of expertise include health economics, medical ethics, qualitative research methods (interviews, focus groups, and observations), psychometrics and questionnaire development, person-centred and integrated care, and physical activity research.

UFC offers methodological support to researchers across RÖL and can assist researchers who are developing new research ideas or who do not have access to local supervision. Supervision of master's and doctoral students is arranged in collaboration with the relevant university.

Services and resources include:

Study design: Studiedesign • regionorebrolan.se
Methodological support and supervision: Metodstöd och handledning • regionorebrolan.se
Data collection instruments and research equipment: Utrustning till forskningsprojekt • regionorebrolan.se

Further information and contact details: Universitetssjukvårdens forskningscentrum (UFC) • regionorebrolan.se

Other services & resources

The National Bioinformatics Infrastructure Sweden provides bioinformatics support, advanced data integration, specialist training, open-science data publication, and access to high-performance data analysis methods. ORU is closely connected to NBIS through SciLifeLab/Clinical Genomics Örebro. For more information and contact details: NBIS - National Bioinformatics Infrastructure Sweden

Health economists at RÖL can support project planning, contribute to the design of research proposals, and conduct health economic analyses. For more information and contact details: Hälsoekonomi • regionorebrolan.se

To develop healthcare services and set appropriate priorities within RÖL, it is important to collaborate with people who have personal experience as patients, service users, and/or relatives. RÖL’s divisions engage in dialogue and collaborate with representatives of the county’s patient and service-user organisations and/or people with personal experience, for example, in research projects, knowledge management, major investigations and development work, and other significant operational changes. For more information and contact details: Delaktighet - patient/brukare/närstående • regionorebrolan.se

RÖL provides access to Greenlight Guru Clinical, an electronic data capture (EDC) system used for collecting and managing research data in clinical studies. Support is also available for study setup and configuration within the platform. For further information and contact details Datainsamlingsverktyg, eCRF (Greenlight Guru Clinical) • regionorebrolan.se

All research projects within RÖL must be stored in FoU Drive. This is a dedicated storage location for research data that is adapted to the information security requirements for processing research data containing sensitive personal data. For more information and contact details: FoU Drive (lagring och delning av forskningsdata) • regionorebrolan.se

Requests for data extraction, de-identified data for power calculations, and copies of medical records for research purposes can be submitted through a central function at RÖL. For more information and contact details: Datauttag • regionorebrolan.se

When applying for external research funding involving RÖL, researchers can receive help in preparing a budget that meets the funder’s requirements for eligible costs. Once research funding has been awarded, project economists can also assist with the project’s financial reporting. For more information and contact details: Ekonomi för forskningsprojekt • regionorebrolan.se