Summer greeting from Rikke Leth-Larsen

Dear colleagues at the Department of Clinical Research,

Before the summer break truly begins, I would like to share a few highlights that have characterised the first half of 2026 at the Department of Clinical Research.

The Faculty of Health Sciences is evolving. We have welcomed a new Dean, Jakob Grauslund, whom many of you know from Odense University Hospital (OUH). Jakob has first-hand knowledge of the opportunities and challenges facing the clinical departments, and I am confident that we are entering a period marked by strong collaboration and shared ambitions. At the same time, we are awaiting the appointment of a new Head of Department for the Department of Regional Health Research, who will succeed Jakob. The Department of Clinical Research and the Department of Regional Health Research together make up the Faculty’s clinical departments and work closely together.
The Faculty is also expanding with the addition of a new clinical department, the Department of Clinical and Preventive Dentistry. I expect that we will have many shared areas of expertise and excellent opportunities for collaboration with our new colleagues.

The educational landscape is also changing. New admission requirements, demographic developments and the Danish Master's reform mean that several degree programmes – particularly those with smaller student cohorts – will need to be rethought. We do not yet know the final decisions that will be made at the Faculty of Health Sciences, but these developments underline the need for innovation and flexibility. At the same time, medical education in the region is being expanded with the introduction of a bachelor's degree programme from September, and in just over a year's time we will welcome the first students to the dentistry and dental hygiene programmes.
The Department of Clinical Research contributes broadly to the Faculty’s degree programmes, and I would like to extend a special thank you to all of you who teach and take pride in delivering high-quality education. Research, teaching and research dissemination remain core responsibilities for all staff at the Department of Clinical Research, but innovation is increasingly becoming an equal part of our mission. Fortunately, we already have many talented colleagues with valuable experience from whom we can learn.

We continue to work purposefully with well-being, competence development and professional development. This spring, we established regular career days for early-career researchers, strengthened opportunities for career guidance for senior researchers, and made significant progress in developing a research leadership development programme at SDU based on the needs of clinical research environments. Most of this work takes place through a close and exceptionally well-functioning collaboration between SDU and OUH. We will also be hosting a joint event for the entire department on 21 October from 13-16 on the theme of AI as a research tool. It is always a pleasure to welcome new staff members – whether they come from local, national or international environments.

New colleagues bring fresh perspectives, experience and ideas, and for that reason I hope we can place even greater emphasis on onboarding and on creating strong academic and social communities from day one.

The 2026–2030 research strategy for the Department of Clinical Research and OUH has now been launched and has set the direction for our shared priorities in the years ahead. Many of you are already well underway with turning the strategy into action.
A sincere thank you to all of you who invest time and effort in developing strong research ideas and turning them into successful grant applications. External funding not only makes research possible; it is also an important mark of excellence that increases visibility and strengthens the position of SDU and OUH among foundations, collaborators and society at large.

Speaking of society and visibility, my own summer began at the Danish People's Meeting (Folkemødet). Many of you contributed to inspiring debates, shared knowledge, built new networks and highlighted the importance of research. It was my first Folkemøde, and I was both impressed and inspired. I am already looking forward to next year.

Thank you for the excellent collaboration, the positive spirit, the high ambitions and the strong determination to succeed together. It is precisely this engagement and sense of community that make the Department of Clinical Research such a special place to be.

I wish you all a wonderful summer.

Kind regards, Rikke
On behalf of the Department Management Team