The fifth INDICATE training session brought together participants from across the consortium to understand the role of metadata in supporting interoperability, data discovery, and federated research across institutions.

Led by María González-Lopez and Paloma Bravo del Cid from the Computational Health Informatics Group at Virgen del Rocío University Hospital, the training focused on metadata standards, cataloguing workflows, and best practices within the INDICATE framework.

A key message throughout the training was that metadata is what makes health data discoverable, understandable and reusable across institutions. Participants explored how researchers often encounter datasets from multiple hospitals without knowing how the data were collected, whether they can be combined or even if they are allowed to access them. 

Metadata provides the answers to these questions by describing what a dataset contains, how it was created, under which conditions it can be used and how it can be accessed. Rather than being administrative overhead, metadata forms the foundation of the INDICATE federated catalogue and enables hospitals and researchers to collaborate without sharing patient-level data.

The session concluded with interactive breakout rooms, where participants took on the role of the local INDICATE data provider team for a fictional university hospital. Working with a realistic case study, they assessed whether the hospital’s existing OMOP database, ETL process and ICU data were ready to support a federated study on early organ failure in patients with suspected sepsis. 

By reviewing governance, metadata, data quality and technical readiness, each group determined whether the hospital was ready to participate or which improvements were still needed. The exercise highlighted that successful federated research requires more than available data. It depends on well-documented metadata, robust data quality and close collaboration between clinical, technical and governance experts.

The INDICATE Communication Network Meeting, organised by Work Package 5, will take place on 9 September 2026, from 12:30 to 13:30 CEST.

During the meeting, participants will receive the latest updates on the development of the INDICATE platform, educational activities, and the communication materials available to support the project.

A key part of the meeting will be a presentation by Arie de Haan, Principal Architect of INDICATE, on building the INDICATE architecture. Arie will provide an overview of the project’s enterprise architecture and explain how it forms the foundation for the development of the INDICATE ecosystem. Using the analogy of constructing a building, the presentation will illustrate how a shared architectural blueprint ensures that the technical components developed across different work packages fit together into one coherent platform.

The session will also offer an opportunity to exchange experiences and discuss how INDICATE is being communicated within different organisations. Participants are encouraged to share their ideas and provide feedback on the communication materials and support they would find most valuable.

Want to attend the meeting? Please let us know by contacting us via info@indicate-europe.eu.

Programme

INDICATE Consortium Meeting 2026

Practical information

DAY 1 | Understand INDICATE: Reflect, connect and align

Day 2 | Implement INDICATE: Solve challenges together

DAY 3 | Sustain INDICATE: Build the future organisation

On 9 July, the INDICATE consortium came together for its monthly online update meeting to discuss project progress, upcoming milestones and the next steps towards expanding the INDICATE platform.

Preparations for the Rome Consortium Meeting

The coordination team shared the latest updates on project management and preparations for the upcoming consortium meeting in Rome, taking place from 14–16 September 2026. More than 50 consortium members have already registered, with over 35 participants expected to attend in person. More about the Rome meeting can be found here.

Partners were encouraged to join the meeting onsite, as the programme will focus on preparing the next phase of INDICATE and strengthening collaboration across work packages. The consortium also received an update on the first reporting period. While the technical report has been finalised, the financial review is currently being completed in close collaboration with the European Commission.

Work Package 5 abstract accepted

A major milestone was celebrated during the meeting: the abstract entitled “An Assessment Framework for Evaluating AI and Federated Learning Training in Intensive Care” has been accepted for presentation at the ESICM LIVES Congress in Lisbon.

The abstract reflects the collaborative work of partners across the consortium and highlights INDICATE’s ongoing efforts to develop robust approaches for evaluating federated AI in intensive care. More about this milestone can be found here.

Building the INDICATE architecture

Jan van den Brand (Technical Lead INDICATE) and Arie de Haan (Principal Architect) presented an overview of the project’s enterprise architecture, explaining how it provides the foundation for the development of the INDICATE ecosystem.

Using the analogy of constructing a building, they demonstrated how a shared architectural blueprint ensures that all technical components developed by different work packages fit together into one coherent platform. The presentation also highlighted the roadmap towards the three development plateaus:

• Plateau 1: enabling federated observational studies (currently nearing completion);
• Plateau 2: supporting federated machine learning training;
• Plateau 3: enabling AI model inference for future clinical decision support.

Partners were invited to contribute ideas and requirements during the current design phase, when changes can still be incorporated efficiently.

Supporting data providers

Celia Álvarez Romero (Wp2) introduced the next activities of the Data Provider Support Workgroup, which has been established to provide practical guidance to participating hospitals during the onboarding process.

Between July and October, each data provider will be invited to a dedicated one-to-one onboarding interview to review progress, discuss technical or organisational challenges and define an onboarding roadmap. Institutions are encouraged to participate with representatives from different disciplines, including project management, IT, data engineering, legal and clinical teams.

Towards one clear onboarding journey

Maarten Ligtenberg (Wp5) presented ongoing work to simplify the onboarding process for data providers and the development  of the structured onboarding flow within the INDICATE Wiki.

Looking ahead

The meeting concluded with appreciation for the contributions of all work packages and a special thank you to Aliza Bos (project administrator) for her work within the coordination team before moving to another European project.

With the architecture progressing, onboarding activities accelerating and preparations underway for the September consortium meeting, INDICATE continues to build towards a secure and scalable European infrastructure for federated intensive care research.

The official INDICATE Consortium Meeting will take place from 14 to 16 September 2026 in Rome, Italy, hosted by our partner Fondazione Policlinio Universitario Agostino Gemelli IRCCS.

As we reach the halfway point of the project, this meeting will focus on reflection and forward planning. We will review key achievements, such as the first use case going live, as well as the main challenges, including updates on communication and education.

Looking ahead, we will focus on the second half of the project. The sessions will cover upcoming deliverables and milestones, progress on data provider onboarding, and the next steps in establishing the legal entity that will operate the INDICATE infrastructure.


Practical information

Date: 14-16 September

Location: Italy, Rome

Venue: Fondazione Policlinico Universitario Agostino Gemelli IRCCS, Largo Agostino Gemelli 8, 00136 Roma, Italy


Register here!

We are pleased to announce that the INDICATE study abstract, “A Multi-Dimensional Assessment Framework for Evaluating AI and Federated Data Training in Intensive Care: The INDICATE Study” has been accepted as an e-Poster at the ESICM LIVES 2026 Congress in Lisbon.

The abstract will be presented by Maria Theodorakopoulou (the Lead of Work Package (WP) 5) during the Data Science 3 session on Wednesday, 14 October 2026, in Lisbon. In addition to the presentation, the abstract will be published in the online supplementary issue of Intensive Care Medicine Experimental, the official journal of ESICM.

This achievement represents an important milestone for WP 5 and reflects the collaborative efforts of all partners who are contributing to the study. Congratulations to everyone involved.

Consortium members attending ESICM LIVES 2026 are encouraged to attend the e-poster presentation and support this important WP5 deliverable. Your presence will help showcase the INDICATE project’s contribution to advancing AI and federated data training in intensive care to the international critical care community.

We look forward to presenting the INDICATE study at ESICM LIVES 2026.