MeRITA - Governance

Istituto Giannina Gaslini (IGG)
– Genoa, Italy
is the coordinator of this application. IGG is a multidisciplinary, highly specialized reference centre with national and international catchment area. It is a national referral centre for rare and complex diseases affecting new-borns, children, and adolescents requiring highly specialized treatment. The Institute has been accredited by Joint Commission International since 2007. It counts over 25 reference and highly specialized centres. The Paediatric Rheumatology Clinic received from the EULAR (European League Against Rheumatisms), the accreditation to Center of Excellence in Rheumatology (years 2008-2028), the only one in Italy and one of the few for Paediatric Rheumatology in Europe. IGG hosts PRINTO coordinating centre, the network managing the PharmaChild and Eurofever registries.
Within MeRITA, IGG is part of the Steering Committe and the Project Core Team, and orchestrates the scientific ad administrative aspects of the project, ensuring cooperation between working groups, supports internal communications and meetings, secretariat and logistics.
  • Nicola Ruperto - nicolaruperto@gaslini.org
  • Riccardo Papa - riccardopapa@gaslini.org
Universitair Medisch Centrum Utrecht (UMCU)
Utrecht, the Netherlands
has a research group formed by both the clinical department of paediatric rheumatology and the translational research groups from the Laboratory for Translational Immunology (LTI). The first one is the largest academic center for juvenile arthritis and other paediatric rheumatic diseases in the Netherlands. Since 2016, the centre is listed as EULAR Center of Excellence as only the 2nd paediatric rheumatology department worldwide. Currently it is one of the 2 leading centres in UCAN-CANDU, a Dutch Canadian Collaborative research project aiming to develop personalized treatment regimes in JIA. Importantly, UMCU also manages the UCAN-U platform, developing novel research techniques, standardizations and operation procedures allowing for international collaborative efforts in paediatric rheumatology.
UMCU is included in the MeRITA projects Steering Committee, and is in charge of the coordination of the Evaluation Working Party, responsible for the discussion of project development and criticism, including a plan for the longterm sustainability of the MERITA registry.
The General University Hospital (GUH )
Prague, Czech Republic
is a major medical facility designated by the Ministry of Health. It provides highly specialized outpatient and inpatient care for children and adults with a wide disease spectrum including rare diseases covering 5 ERNs where it is a full member. In addition to providing health care, GUH is the main teaching base of the First Faculty of Medicine of Charles University in Prague and one of the most important scientific institutes in the field of therapeutic and diagnostic methods in the Czech Republic. It is a leading paediatric rheumatology, AID and adult vasculitis centre in the country, and it is also the oldest medical faculty in Central Europe.
GUH is is part of the Project Core Team, and cooperates in the definition of the structure of the MERITA registry.
School of Medicine of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (AUTH )
-Thessaloniki, Greece
is one of the most important and well-established Schools in the country, both quantitatively and qualitatively, with 4,000 registered students and 82 departments and laboratories.
AUTH is part of the Working Party that will provide the full ERDRI registration of the RITA registries.
University Medical Centre Ljubljana (UKCL)
Ljubljana, Sloveni
is the largest and most research-intensive hospital in Slovenia. It is an integral part of the UKC and is the largest centre dedicated to improving children’s health in the country with a long history of clinical and research excellence serving as referral centre for paediatric patients from Central and South Eastern European countries. The Department of Allergology, Rheumatology and Clinical Immunology provides comprehensive multidisciplinary services for children with inflammatory paediatric rheumatic diseases. UKCL is the only hospital in Slovenia providing specialized care for some diseases, including the rare diseases with particular interest in genetic inherited disorders like inborn errors of metabolism and primary immune deficiencies.
UKCL is in charge of the coordination of the ERDRI Registration Team.
University of Latvia (UL)
Riga, Latvia
counts 131 accredited study programme, including 53 undergraduate programme, 54 graduate and 24 doctoral study programme. Total student count in 2016/2017 was 14290, including 9807 undergraduate and 4483 graduate programme students. The number of students at the UL and its colleges constitutes 17% of the total student population in Latvia. The total number of recipients of professional qualifications, academic and scientific degrees in 2016/2017 stands at 3615.
UL is part of the Working Party that will provide the full ERDRI registration of the RITA registries.
Children's Memorial Health Institute (IPCZD)
Warsaw, Poland
is the largest and best-equipped institute of paediatric healthcare in Poland. It is directly subordinate to Poland's Ministry of Healthcare, the center employs roughly 2,000 physicians and staff, and includes 17 ward and 29 disease-specific out-patients clinics. It collaborates with Poland's leading medical schools as well as non-governmental organizations.
IPCZD is part of the Working Party that will provide the full ERDRI registration of the RITA registries.
Hospital of Lithuanian University of Health Sciences Kauno klinikos (LSMU)
Kaunas, Lithuania
is the largest health care institution in the country. Established in 1940, it provides emergency medical care, in-patient hospital services and outpatient testing and services, for patients from all the country and abroad. Health care is delivered according to European standards, evidence-based medicine is provided by highly qualified medical staff. Besides, close cooperation with Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Kaunas klinikos has established the Rare diseases management coordination center. This center consolidates 19 centers for rare diseases. The main peculiarity of center organization is that leading Kauno klinikos physicians are brought together in each center in order to co-operate in rare disease diagnosis and treatment.
LSMU is part of the Working Party that will provide the full ERDRI registration of the RITA registries.
Center for Chronic Immunodeficiency (CCI)
Freiburg, Germany
is an internationally recognized institution in Germany where immunologists, infectious disease specialists, hematologists and transplant physicians collaborate to provide optimal care for immunodeficient patients of all age groups. The excellent translational research program allows rapid transfer of research results into state-of-the-art diagnosis and treatment of patients with immunodeficiency. The CCI provides clinical and laboratory services to pediatric and adult patients with diseases of the immune system associated with infection susceptibility, inflammation or autoimmunity. This includes an active program of stem cell transplantation for pediatric and adult patients with severe immunodeficiencies. CCI hosts the international ESID Registry.
CCI is is part of the Project Core Team, cooperates in the definition of the structure of the MERITA registry and is part of the Evaluation Working Party.