About the EFPN
The European Fair Pricing Network (EFPN) is founded by Cancer Charities from over 10 European countries and is established to work for fairer prices of cancer medicines while upkeeping the innovation pipeline and early access for patients to promising new medicines.

Increasing transparency in the pharmaceutical system through research and advocacy is the goal of our Network. The EFPN has two related major objectives: research and advocacy. Research and reliable European data are needed to measure problems and challenges in the current pharma markets, and to learn and develop new ways of organizing innovation and supply of effective cancer medicines. The research Unit provides evidence to support the Network’s advocacy. The research Unit is located in the Netherlands Cancer Institute and supervised by- and embedded in the Van Harten research group that has a focus on health economics and early stage health technology assessment.

About the research
The EFPN research unit will focus on monitoring and providing information on specified themes and questions related to medicines access and equity. The research agenda shall be demand-driven and take the research need of founding partners into account, while focusing on an collaborative European approach. The EFPN research Unit works together within a network of researchers connected to different European Cancer Societies. The PhD will also function as the research coordinator. Besides this network the PhD there will be close cooperation with the OECI working group on health economics.
The EFPN research unit will monitor and provide information with a focus on three research questions in the first two years:

• Access: Which highly valuable medicines are available for specific populations/population subgroups?
• Transparency: At which (actual) price are the above medicines available?
• Accountability:  How high is the current amount of public investment in pharmaceutical R&D?

About the position
We are looking for a PhD to start our research team by early 2020 and welcome reactions from interested candidates from now on.

The PhD-student shall be responsible for conducting the research according to the EFPN proposal, amongst others:
I.  Support with building and working with a scientific network corresponding with the research agenda
II. Collect and analyze data
II. Conduct research according to the research agenda
II. Ensuring the quality of the data and research
IV. Ensure alignment with advocacy unit
VI. ‘publish in scientific journals/ present research findings at scientific conferences

The PhD is a full time position (FTE 1,0) for a period four years. This position enables you to quickly establish a broad network.

The PhD position is a full time position and open for candidates with an obvious interest in the field of health economics and cancer drug access. You are expected to have a master degree in economics, health economics, health services research or international public health, or another relevant master degree. Preferably prior research experience and in publishing scientific work. Moreover, you must have excellent English communication and writing skills.

In the final round of selection the remaining candidates will be provided with the EFPN full proposal (although still to be finalized by those to be employed) in order to reflect in detail on the initiative. Although the EFPN unit is located in Amsterdam, we especially invite candidates from other EU countries than the Netherlands to react.

Fixed-term contract: 4 years.

The temporary employment will be for a period of 4 years. The gross salary per month will be from € 2.798 and max € 3.446,- according to the standard (100%) PhD candidate scales. The terms of employment will be in accordance with the CAO Ziekenhuizen (Collective Labour Agreement for Hospitals) and can be consulted at: http://www.nvz-ziekenhuizen.nl/cao-kenniscentrum/cao/download.

Amsterdam is a very lively city with many cultural amenities. The institute is located within a 20 minute tram or bicycle ride from the city center and within 20 minutes from Schiphol airport by car, bus or bicycle.

The Netherlands Cancer Institute (NKI)

The Netherlands Cancer Institute (NKI) is an independent research institute located in Amsterdam. The Institute covers all major areas of molecular and cellular cancer biology, with special emphasis on immunology, cancer cell biology and translational research; increasingly health technology assessment (HTA) and health economic studies are performed in early stages of research that can lead to clinical innovations. The Netherlands Cancer Institute and the Antoni van Leeuwenhoek Hospital form an comprehensive cancer center, combining a research laboratory and a hospital under one roof in a single, independent organization This research is focused on improving cancer treatment through imaging and molecular diagnostics, new medicine, immunotherapy, improved operating techniques, more effective radiotherapy, and combinations of these, HTA, epidemiology and psychosocial research.