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New podcast episode: Strengthening Biobanks through Patient and Public involvement (webinar by the BBMRI-ERIC Stakeholder Forum)
Engagement and involvement are not possible if you don’t have trust. (Sara Rebbling)
This article is 346 words and a three-minute read.
The BBMRI-ERIC Stakeholder Forum
Constant dialogue with patients, caregivers and the public is a key guiding principle in biobanking and research. Yet, public and patient involvement, often referred to also as research participant involvement, has not yet become the usual practice in many biobanks.
The first webinar organised by the BBMRI-ERIC Stakeholder Forum recorded on 4 February 2026 focused on the importance and benefits of involving patients and public representatives as co-partners in biobanking and research. They speak with the voices of lived experience and knowledge and can take a crucial role in shaping the biobanking ecosystem.
Our Stakeholder Forum is the main interface for patient organisations with biobanks and it is an integral part of BBMRI-ERIC’s governance and culture. It’s a bi-directional relationship between the biobank community and the stakeholders and the stakeholder forum is firmly enshrined in the statutes of BBMRI-ERIC. (Eric Vermeulen, Chair of the BBMRI-ERIC Stakeholder Forum Patients and Citizens pillar)
In the webinar four invited speakers – biobankers and patient representatives – discussed best practices on engagement and involvement and also addressed currently existing barriers and challenges. Sara Rebbling (Biobank Sweden) and Ronny Baber (Head of Leipzig Medical Biobank) shared their experiences from the biobanking side whereas Eric Vermeulen (Chair of the BBMRI-ERIC Stakeholder Forum Patients’ and Citizens’ Pillar) and Albert Counet (President of Ligue Huntington Francophone Belge) addressed the topic from the patient perspective. Together, they explored practical solutions to strengthen participation and co-creation in biobanking – the core mission of the BBMRI-ERIC Stakeholder Forum.
Enjoy the recording of the webinar as podcast episode or here on Youtube and stay tuned for future webinars by the BBMRI-ERIC Stakeholder Forum. On Youtube and in previous episodes of our podcast, you also find more content highlighting patient involvement, for example here in this episode of our BBMRI-ERIC ELSI Dialogues: Empowering Voices: Enhancing patient engagement in oncology research.
You can always find upcoming events and webinar here on our homepage.
Original webinar details:
Title: Strengthening Biobanks through Patient and Public involvement
Recorded 4 February 2026
Speakers:
- Eric Vermeulen, Chair of BBMRI-ERIC Stakeholder Forum Patients’ and Citizens’ Pillar and Patient Participation Advisor at PostCovid NL
- Ronny Baber, Head of the Leipzig Medical Biobank
- Sara Rebbling, Member of Biobank Sweden’s citizen engagement team and Department manager at Biobanken norr, Region Västerbotten
- Albert Counet, President of Ligue Huntington Francophone Belge and member of the BBMRI-ERIC Stakeholder Forum Patients’ and Citizens’ Pillar
- Host: Manuela Pausan, BBMRI-ERIC
