The Physiome, Systems Biology, the Virtual Physiological Human, Personal Health Systems, Biomedical Informatics, Life Science e-Infrastructures, Systems Pharmacology. All of these domains share one common issue: the need for integration. To implement biomedical research outputs into clinical practice and healthcare industries we need to integrate data, information, knowledge and wisdom. We need to integrate data of the same patient stored in different hospitals in different member states or in clinical research databases; we need to integrate the information related to various parts and processes of the human body into a systemic understanding of pathophysiology; we need to integrate the knowledge digitally captured into metadata, ontologies and models in order to fight the combinatory explosion of cognitive complexity integrative research is producing; and we need to integrate the wisdom produced in the research laboratories and in the clinical practice, so that it can be formalised in guidelines, standards, and protocols.

This is a huge challenge that, if met, will have a tremendous impact on the life of our citizens, and on the European and international economy. The vision of a “digital me” that contains all my healthcare information, safely managed for access from the various biomedical professionals with my approval, communicated with all my wearable and implanted technology to constantly monitor my health status and informing me, my peers, or my healthcare providers of alarming events, supporting the collaboration of various specialists around my complex systemic diseases, and used with all my data to predict the future development of my health in order to facilitate disease prevention and a fully self-aware lifestyle, is a powerful vision. But the challenges are huge.

For Europe to stand a chance in facing this challenge we need to join forces. Following the recommendation of the VPH Network of Excellence, a new initiative is taking shape under the name of “Virtual Physiological Human (VPH) Institute”. A pro tempore board has been formed, which will draft the statute of this no-profit organisation, incorporate it, and start the membership campaign.

Meanwhile the Board is seeking support from the community to this initiative through a public petition through which research, industry, clinical, and societal stakeholders from all over the world can express their support to the idea of a VPH institute. 

We invite you to sign this on-line public petition that states the need for the creation of a European VPH Institute.  By compiling the on-line with your data you will confirm your support to the initiative, and you will be included in the list of supporters that will be invited to the first foundational meeting of the institute.

•  Additional information:

http://www.biomedtown.org/biomed_town/vphop/reception/knowledgement/

http://www.vph-noe.eu/

http://www.biomedtown.org/town/biomed_town/VPH/petitions/institute/

• Useful links:

http://www.biomedtown.org/biomed_town/vphop/reception/knowledgement/UsefulLinks