RESEARCHERS in Oxford are to receive £122 million in government funding over the next five years to improve diagnosis, treatment and care for NHS patients.
The money was awarded to the city’s two National Institute for Health and Care Research Biomedical Research Centres.
The NIHR Oxford BRC, a partnership between the University of Oxford and Oxford University Hospitals trust, will receive £86.6m over the next five years to fund 15 research themes, while the NIHR Oxford Health BRC, a partnership between the university and Oxford Health trust, will receive £35.4m to support research across 11 themes.
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The centres bring together academics and clinicians to translate scientific breakthroughs into potential new treatments, diagnostics and medical technologies that benefit NHS patients.
Professor Helen McShane, who directs the NIHR Oxford BRC, said: “This funding is a recognition of the high calibre work done by our researchers in recent years, exemplified by establishing emergency stroke clinics, showing some shoulder surgery is not needed, and optimising the use of new treatments for asthma and other airway diseases, as well as all the work during the covid pandemic, where the development of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine and the RECOVERY treatment trial for people with severe covid, among other important trials, has saved millions of lives.
“As well as innovating to improve the treatment and care of NHS patients, our world-class scientists attract significant investment from commercial and charitable funders and our research shows that the centres play an important role in boosting the local economy, as well as the UK life science industry.”
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Professor John Geddes, who directs the NIHR Oxford Health BRC, said: “The successful application was a result of a huge amount of work involving patients and public, researchers and clinicians across Oxford and our partners across the country.
"It builds on the success of the current centre which has, over the past five years, delivered new psychological and digital treatments, advances in drug discovery and new ways of integrating research and clinical care.
“The new award now provides us with a wonderful opportunity to transform care for mental and brain health and wellbeing across the whole country and, actually, the world.
"We can now translate the best research from UK biomedical science, data science and engineering, social science and arts and the humanities for the benefit of clinical care and population health.”
Professor Meghana Pandit, Oxford University Hospital’s chief executive officer, commented: “Oxford is a vibrant academic medical hub, and the spirit of innovation permeates our clinical work, not least because of the presence of so many important University research institutes on our hospital sites.
“Patients in Oxford have access to the latest cutting-edge treatments and medical techniques which have been developed by BRC-funded scientists.”
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This story was written by Anna Colivicchi, she joined the team this year and covers health stories for the Oxfordshire papers.
Get in touch with her by emailing: Anna.colivicchi@newsquest.co.uk
Follow her on Twitter @AnnaColivicchi
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