Founded in 1964, the French National Institute for Health and Medical Research (Inserm) is a public scientific and technological institute which operates under the joint authority of the Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Innovation and Ministry for Solidarity and Health. Inserm is the only public body in France to be dedicated to biological and medical research and human health and is involved in the entire range of activities from the laboratory to the patient’s bedside. Its researchers are committed to studying all human illnesses, whether common or rare. With an initial 2021 budget of €970m, Inserm supports more than 300 laboratories nationwide. In total, nearly 14,000 researchers, engineers, technicians, operators, university hospital staff and post-doctoral students work within its teams…
Inserm is a partner of Science & You2021, Meet Emilie Denat-Turgis, Head of Communications at Inserm’s East France Delegation.
What does scientific outreach represent for you, and what are its implications for the general public – especially during the Science & You event?
“Science for health” is both our motto and the key theme guiding the day-to-day actions of the men and women working at Inserm. Inserm and its teams have a duty to communicate and pass on accurate information that is accessible to everyone. It is vital that research organisations play an active part in scientific outreach and events like Science & You.
Our aim is to provide the general public with the necessary insights, and to explain the research that Inserm does in plain, accessible language for greater understanding and awareness. The regional communication officers travel across the area, leading a whole range of measures in rural and urban communities alike.
This approach is also the key to sparking aspirations, to passing on the thrill of research and to inspiring the younger generations to get involved in French public research. Science & You provides an opportunity to do all of that at the same time! As well as for professionals to chat about what can be done and what tools should be developed to foster such sharing of knowledge with the general public.
Regarding scientific outreach in the health sphere, does this appear to be a major priority given the current situation? Do you think that, for interaction between citizens and healthcare professionals to be effective, there needs to be a modern shakeup or rethink of outreach events? What kind of changes will this entail in your view?
Right at the start of 2020 (so before the health crisis), Inserm decided to make the importance of encouraging science in society part of its strategic plan (2020-2025). The health crisis that we have been living through since has only heightened the necessity for accurate scientific information and communication where health is concerned. This is clearly a major priority both for guiding public decision-making and for empowering each and every citizen in getting to grips with “science in action”.
For more effective interaction between society and science, Inserm has two main goals: to make citizens real stakeholders in the Institute and to communicate in a clear and transparent manner, particularly about the added value and impact on general health of the findings of the research carried out at Inserm.
The future of scientific outreach must indeed be shaped by new formats – which will evidently be increasingly digital to cater to new uses, not least among the younger generation. But our approach must also be bolder, by encouraging the development of participatory research for example.
What can be done to counter fake news, which is looming ever larger in our society?
The health crisis showed just how important it was to put scientific discourse back at the heart of discussions and debates with the general public. This is what we have been trying to do for several years now and especially over the past year.
To counter disinformation, Inserm has recently set up an anti-fake news response unit bringing together researchers from the Institute working on this issue in order to discuss the good practices to implement and unite around collaborative projects.
One of these projects is the Canal Detox series. Created in 2018, today this is continuing to provide innovative insight via engaging videos and short texts that highlight what science has to say about topical subjects such as “Vitamin D: is it really effective against Covid 19?” or “Are screens really bad for our health?”. There are also plans in motion to publish a book on fake news in the health sphere.
Since Inserm partnered up with news channel TF1/LCI, researchers from the response unit have been sharing their expertise about the pandemic and answering citizens’ questions via chats with the contributing journalists.
The regular media contributions by our CEO Gilles Bloch are also a highlight in this respect: these give a rundown of where we are in terms of Covid-19 research as well as other health research subjects that are important for the population at large.