University medical centres are increasingly required to apply new knowledge for the benefit of society, and for the health and wellbeing of the general population in particular. 'Societal valorisation', as this is known, is a new challenge to researchers and universities which can, and should be, combined with excellent research. The valorisation process involves designing research around complex societal issues in collaboration with relevant stakeholders from outside the university. By working together to study underlying causes and potential solutions in practice, insight will be developed into what is necessary to improve the health of the population, and also the roles various parties can play in this. In doing this, researchers must be prepared to step outside their familiar environment and to actively interact and network with the outside world. This implies an active attitude and a focus on collaboration and learning from available multidisciplinary expertise. It is important to gain more experience in working and experimenting in real practice.