Priority research and development areas for health crisis management including emerging infectious disease control: An expert questionnaire survey in Japan

Health crisis management is becoming increasingly important worldwide, as evident by the most recent COVID-19 pandemic. To identify priority Research and Development (R&D) areas for health crisis management, an expert questionnaire survey using an online, two-round Delphi technique was conducted in Japan in 2019. The analysis results revealed that the top 3 R&D topics that experts considered important were related to infectious disease control, such as a control system for drug-resistant infections, ultra-small sensor, and drug development using alternatives to animal models. It was also revealed that not only biomedical approaches but also R&D in collaboration with IT and social science are considered important by experts. The results of this study might support developing a R&D strategy for health crisis management not only in Japan but also other countries.