Swiss Academy of Medical Sciences (SAMS)

Portrait of the SAMS

Founded in 1943 as a research funding institution, the Swiss Academy of Medical Sciences (SAMS) nowadays acts as a bridge builder between science and society. It is financially supported by the federal government and collaborates with private foundations. The SAMS also strengthens fields of research that are not so well-established in Switzerland, e.g. palliative care or healthcare research. As an independent partner in the health sector, the SAMS fulfils mandates on behalf of the federal government, such as the establishment of the Swiss Personalized Health Network (SPHN), which creates the prerequisites that will enable the exchange of health data necessary for medical research. The SAMS relies on numerous volunteer experts who work in 25 committees and 4 working groups. Unlike other academies, SAMS is not an umbrella organization of specialized societies. The supreme body is the Senate, which consists of about 250 members and represents the actors of university medicine, specialized societies and health policy.

Activity of the SAMS

Today, with its two main programmes, «Medicine and Society» and «Medical Science and Practice», the activity of the SAMS is concentrated on the following:

• Promotion of professional training for the new generation of scientists, especially in clinical research;
• Support of a high quality of scientific culture in biomedical and clinical research;
• The connection between scientific medicine and medical practice;
• Clarification of ethical questions in connection with medical developments and their effects on society;
• Comprehensive reflection on the future of medicine;
• Engagement in university, scientific and education politics, combined with expert and advisory activity for politicians and authorities.