Participating Medical Institutions

• Must be a Designated Medical Institution for Specified and Class I Infectious Diseases that accepts patients in cooperation with the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare and the prefecture (local governments, health centers, etc.).
  *Designated Medical Institutions for Specified Infectious Diseases are designated by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare. Designated Medical Institutions for Class I Infectious Diseases are as nominated administratively by the prefectures.
  *In principle, one medical institution per prefecture. However, prefectures that already have Designated Medical Institutions for Specified Infectious Diseases may also add designated Medical Institutions for Class I Infectious Diseases.
• Must have an established system for providing outpatient and inpatient care for novel influenza and other infectious diseases in accordance with the Infectious Diseases Control Law.
• Must be able to conduct clinical research using the network and participate in regular training and drills in normal times.
• Must demonstrate a willingness to actively participate in clinical research even during emergencies.
• Must meet one of the following conditions:
  1. Intends to secure the ability to conduct in-house clinical research.
  2. If conducting clinical research in-house is difficult due to resource constraints, is willing to enter into a support agreement with a Research-Promoting Institutions.
• Must agree to the Infectious disease Clinical Research netwOrk With National repository (iCROWN) Repository Implementation Plan.
• Must participate in Institutional Coordination Meeting.

Participation in the Infectious disease Clinical Research netwOrk With National repository (iCROWN) shall be open to medical institutions that meet the following requirements:

• Institutions that have entered into a medical care agreement* under the Infectious Diseases Control Law must possess regional network functions (such as ARO capabilities) and be able to collaborate with 1) Research-Implementing Institutions in normal times.
  *Medical care agreement refers to an agreement in which the institution secures beds and is capable of dispatching medical personnel.
• Must be able to support the clinical research activities of Research-Implementing Institutions in need, both from scientific/technical perspectives and through operational assistance in study execution.
  *The specific Research-Implementing Institutions to be supported will be determined by the administrative office based on needs of Research-Implementing Institutions, seeds of Research-Promoting Institutions, geographic location, and other relevant factors.
• Should ideally have the capacity to serve as the principal investigator (PI) for clinical research and hopefully be a core clinical research hospital.
• Must demonstrate a willingness to actively participate in clinical research even during emergencies.
• Must be able to collaborate with the administrative office to support the conduct of clinical research.
• Must participate in the network’s strategic meetings held in normal times in preparation for pandemics.
• Must be able to enter into a formal agreement confirming its commitment to providing research support.

• Must be nominated administratively by the prefecture and maintain an established collaborative relationship with a Research-Promoting Institution in normal times.
• Must be a institution subject to Measures to Ensure Medical Care Levels at the Initial Period of an Epidemic that accepts patients in cooperation with the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare and the prefecture (local governments, health centers, etc.).
• Must express willingness to register clinical specimens and cases for studies conducted under this project.
• Must agree to the Infectious disease Clinical Research netwOrk With National repository (iCROWN) Repository Implementation Plan.