A special launch event takes place at Southampton Research Hub, one of four hubs forming part of the new NIHR Wessex Commercial Research Delivery Centre (CRDC)
The event also coincided with the official launch of the new Be Part of Research online registry. More than 590,000 people have already signed up and the hope is to encourage many more.
Satvir Kaur, MP for Southampton Test, cut the ribbon to mark the official opening held at the newly located Southampton Research Hub, now situated at Shirley Health Centre in the heart of the community. Locating the hubs in community settings will enable many more poeple to take part.
Satvir said: "Southampton has always been at the forefront of cutting-edge innovation. I'm honoured to help launch this new Commercial Research Delivery Centre. It's great to see opportunities open up in the community for more people to take part in innovative research which will help to drive improvements in healthcare for all. We desperately need more people from all backgrounds to take part to ensure new treatments and interventions are relevant and safe for the whole population – I'd urge people to sign up to #bepartofresearch to find out more."
Satvir was joined by research participant Deborah, from Southampton. “I was thrilled to take part in this special ceremony,” she said. “I’ve previously taken part in a study which was investigating a new flu vaccine, and I am keen to take part again. We need all sorts of people, from all sorts of backgrounds, to put themselves forwards for clinical trials. This is the only way we can improve healthcare for everyone, helping save and improve lives.”
The new centre is part of a national network funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). The new network is a response to findings that the UK has been falling behind in commercial clinical trials activity and slipping behind other countries in international rankings. There is also an urgent need to increase representation from all communities in commercial clinical trials.
The overall aim of the CRDCs is to enhance the speed and efficiency of commercial clinical research delivery, contributing to the health and wealth of the nation. They will work with industry and other research delivery infrastructure to support the UK’s status as one of the best places in the world for innovative companies to bring their research portfolios.
The new Wessex-based CRDC builds on the success of four existing research hubs in Portsmouth, Southampton, Bournemouth and Weymouth. Since opening, people from across the region have benefitted from being able to take part in vitally important public health studies in their local area. This included taking part in the first ever late stage norovirus vaccine trial, with huge potential to protect both individuals and lessen the winter burden on the healthcare system as a whole.
The new CRDC will:
• Further increase access for the public across Hampshire, Dorset and the Isle of Wight to participate in important research to advance healthcare
• Help shift clinical trials beyond large hospital trusts into community settings, meaning those in underserved areas will have better access
• Expand the use of our two mobile research units to support more trials in the community
• Support more GP practices to become research active, bringing trials even closes to people’s homes
• Work with patient and public involvement and engagement officers to build local links with communities to increase the diversity of our recruitment
• Broaden our range of research to include trials for both healthy volunteers and patients with conditions – widening access to innovative treatments and interventions
• Create opportunities for people living in Salisbury and Basingstoke to take part in research
• Provide access to a network of commercially active sites with gold-standard set-up times and performance
• Build links with industry, leading to greater inward investment into the Wessex area and the UK as a whole
Several local organisations are working in partnership to deliver and support the new NIHR Commercial Research Delivery Centre:
• University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust (lead)
• Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust
• University Hospitals Dorset NHS Foundation Trust
• Dorset County Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
• Dorset HealthCare University NHS Foundation Trust
• Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
• Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust
• The Adam Practice, Poole
• South Central Ambulance Service
• Hampshire and Isle of Wight Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust
• NHS Dorset
• NHS Hampshire and Isle of Wight
• South Central Regional Research Delivery Network
• South West Central Regional Research Delivery Network
The NIHR CRDC operates under the governance of Wessex Health Partners, a regional partnership working to accelerate improvements in health and care through research and innovation.
Dr Patrick Moore, Poole-based GP and Director of NIHR Wessex CRDC said: "Many participants in our trials are motivated by a strong desire to give back to the NHS and contribute to groundbreaking medical advancements that could improve the health and care of others in the future. With this expansion, even more people will have the opportunity to take part in vital research, driving meaningful improvements both regionally and beyond."
Prof Saul Faust, Co-Director of NIHR Wessex CRDC, said: "Becoming an official CRDC is a great milestone for Wessex Research Hubs. What makes this even more special is the opportunity to continue working as a collaborative team across the whole region. Being part of the new national network is an exciting development that will help us to offer taking part in clinical trials to many more people."