News

Local publications:

HWHCT Research Newsletters

September 2023: September 2023 Research newsletter.pdf [pdf] 1MB

July 2023: July 2023 Research newsletter .pdf [pdf] 1MB

April 2023:  April 2023 Research newsletter .pdf [pdf] 942KB

February 2023:  FINAL Research February 2023 update.pdf [pdf] 914KB

December 2022:  Research December 2022 update.pdf [pdf] 1MB

 

CRN WM (Clinical Research Network West Midlands) Bulletin

10.11.23: CRN WM Bulletin #89 (campaign-archive.com) 27.10.23: CRN WM Bulletin #88 (campaign-archive.com) 13.10.23: CRN WM Bulletin #87 (campaign-archive.com)29.9.23 CRN WM Bulletin #86 (campaign-archive.com)15.9.23: CRN WM Bulletin #85 (campaign-archive.com)1.9.23: CRN WM Bulletin #83 (campaign-archive.com) 18.8.23: CRN WM Bulletin #83 (campaign-archive.com) 4.8.23: CRN WM Bulletin #82 (campaign-archive.com) 21.7.23: CRN WM Bulletin #81 (campaign-archive.com) 10.7.23: CRN WM Bulletin #80 (campaign-archive.com)

 

CRN WM (Clinical Research Network West Midlands) Wellbeing Bulletin

Wellbeing Bulletin - October 2023 (mailchi.mp) - October Maintaining Good Relationships at Work (mailchi.mp) - August 2023 3.7.23: Wellbeing Bulletin - July 2023 (mailchi.mp) Meditation and Mental Health - June 2023

 

West Midlands Academic Health Science Network

August 2023; July 2023; June 2023; May 2023; April 2023 

 

Local research news:

RADAR study published in the Lancet (November 2023)

Headed up by Dr Barny Major (PI – Principal Investigator), staff from Herefordshire supported this study which looked at ‘benefits and harms of a gradual process of antipsychotic reduction compared with maintenance treatment.’

It found that ‘a gradual reduction over several months in the dose of maintenance antipsychotics in people diagnosed with schizophrenia and related psychotic disorders did not lead to benefits in social functioning and was more likely to lead to relapse than continuing on maintenance treatment.’

Find out more here:  RADAR - main publication (Lancet 2023).pdf [pdf] 376KB 

2023 EBP Conference — 16-20.10.23

National conference hosted by us: 2023 EBP conference - Leaders in their field and inspirational research careers. 

We had a fantastic week hosting our 3rd FREE virtual EBP conference which this year went national! HUGE thanks to the fantastic host of speakers who engaged and inspired delegates and to everyone who attended. Over 650 tickets were allocated across the week and delegate feedback has been overwhelmingly positive.

• The specialisms covered each day (with certificates of attendance available) were:
  • Day 1: Social & Community Psychiatry; Perinatal mental health; Addiction; Psychosis and cognitive neuroscience. Speakers: Dr John Devaprium; Prof Swaran Singh; Dr Jan Larkin; Claire Marshall; Dr Maria Dauvermam
  • Day 2: Psychosis; Cognitive screening and rehabilitation; Dementia. Speakers: Prof Max Birchwood; Dr Shirley Evans; Prof Rosh das Nair.
  • Day 3: Inspirational research career journeys. Speakers: Prof Catherine Evans; Sarah Ellison; Dr Tania Gergel; Dr Monica Leverton.
  • Day 4: Dietetics; Physiotherapy; Community based research; the RIVA study. Speakers: Dr Graeme O’Connor; Dr Claire Minshull; Prof Eleanor Bradley & Dr Peter Unwin.
  • Day 5: EBP - what's happening here at HWHCT. Speakers: Simon Meadows; Abgail Brown; Saffron Davies; Paul MacDonald; Prof Peter Langdon.

For further information including links to the conference recordings and how to request your conference certificate see our EBP Conference webpage.

Keep up to date with all things research by following us on: Twitter; Instagram, LinkedIn, our intranet pages, our webpage, or email us.

 

Research collaborators - 1st birthday coming up November 2023

We launched the Research Collaborator role (similar to a 'champion' like role) in November 2022 whose aim was to enable ANYONE who works at HWHCT to get involved in research. 30 staff stepped up and have supported the delivery of research across the Trust. HUGE thanks for your work to date.

As we approach our 1st birthday we welcome anyone who may be interested in joining our 2nd cohort of Research Collaborators to  get in touch  and book onto a 'finding out more' session on either Monday 13.11.23 at 12noon or Thursday 23.11.23 at 1pm (both via Teams).

If you want to help us promote research within your teams as well as to patients, maybe learn something new, meet a group of like-minded people, and can give 1 hour a month (max), then we’d love to hear from you. We welcome new people at any time so if you're unable to make the above dates don't worry. Email:  alice.madden1@nhs.net  for further information.

 

PI (Principal Investigator) essentials virutal training

Are you a new PI or someone who's interested in finding out more? Then look out for future PI Essentials virtual training dates in early Spring 2024. Thank you to all who attended the sessions in July 2023.

Aims and objectives of the course are:

- Discuss the PI leadership role in effective study identification, set up, recruitment and conduct.

- Explore 3 elements of success in PI role: engagement, oversight and communication

- Identify the skills and behaviours required to be an effective PI

For future bookings please click here: https://learn.nihr.ac.uk/mod/facetoface/view.php?f=872. You will need to set up a NIHR Learn account (if don't already have one) to register. If you have any queries please don't hesitate to contact us.

 

The Integrated Care System Community-led Research Engagement and Prioritisation Project (Summer 2023)

• In partnership with VCSE organisations across Herefordshire and Worcestershire, our aim is to widen engagement in health and care research across the region to better understand and ultimately reduce health inequalities
• The project is funded by the Clinical Research Network West Midlands for 12 months
• This will be a co-produced activity, reflecting the lived experiences and health agendas of people across both counties
• Together, we aim to co-design a community-led research framework which can be sustained beyond the life of this project.

For further information please see this Powerpoint document:  20230620_Community-led Research Engagement Presentation_v1.pptx [pptx] 276KB  To keep you up to date progress will be reported here. If you’re interested in learning more please don’t hesitate to get in touch.

 

Research studies increase by 15% in the West Midlands as the NHS reaches 75 (5.7.23)

Research in the West Midlands continues to thrive with the number of clinical trials that took place in the region in 2022/23 increasing by 15%  on the previous year. Read more here.

 

#Red4Research Day - 16.6.23

#Red4Research Day aims to get as many people as possible wearing red to demonstrate their support and appreciation for all those participating, undertaking and supporting research. It is an opportunity to showcase and celebrate the phenomenal work, learning legacy and innovative treatments/systems/techniques that have arisen from R&D. And this is exactly what we got up to on 16.6.23!

The R&D team would like to say a HUGE thank you to EVERYONE who supports the delivery of research within this Trust – in direct delivery; promotion of studies and as participants themselves. Change doesn’t happen without you!

Here in this Trust we currently have studies open in:

• Psychosis
• Anxiety and depression
• Eating disorders
• Dietetics
• Maternal mental health
• Autism
• Personality disorder
• Learning disabilities

…with a number of other studies in set up.

 

Staff and student Shadowing opportunities with the R&D Team (available from April 2023)

R&D team members, Maria and Amber, have developed a shadowing day to enable more people to gain access to a basic understanding of how NHS health research works and show the paths that can be taken to get more involved.

If you or anyone you know in your team is interested please don’t hesitate to get in touch by emailing us: WHCNHS.ResearchDevelopment@nhs.net

 

Momentous milestone reached for the first time by this Trust’s Research and Development (R&D) Team (March 2023)

• For the first time ever the R&D Team here at HWHCT recruited over 500 people to research studies in the year Oct 2021 - Sept 2022!
• Not only is this the highest number of people ever recruited to take part in research in this Trust in a year, but it brings with it hugely important additional funding
• Sam Topping, Research and Development Manager says: ‘This is a HUGE achievement made possible by the public who have participated and fantastic colleagues across the Trust who have: directly helped run and deliver research; taken part in studies, and who have promoted what’s happening. The R&D Team could not have done it without you all so a HUGE thank you.’
• A wide variety of different studies recruited participants to reach this milestone, including COVID questionnaire studies, Dietetic studies, Learning Difficulties studies and Mental Health studies

 

Research in Wider Care and Communities Site - Now Live! (20.2.23)

The Research in Wider Care and Communities site has been created to provide one space for the research delivery community to access key information, which it needs to engage and recruit in wider care and community settings and services.  This has been developed as part of a Supraregional initiative by East of England, East Midlands and West Midlands Clinical Research Networks to provide one space for the research delivery community to access key information which they need to engage and recruit in wider care and community settings and services.

 

Older Adults Team – research work published

We are really thrilled to be able to share the links to some of the articles that have been published by team members within this Trust’s Older Adults Team. HUGE congratulations to everyone involved!

• Title: Service Evaluation: Exploring service user and caregiver experience of remote assessment and intervention within a dementia service during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Authors: Natasha Czerwinski, Julia Cook, Joanne Martin & Hanneke Monks  

FPOP Bulletin (Faculty of the Psychology of Older People: BPS) No.154 April 2021, page 10-17 ISSN: 2396-9660 (Online)

• Title: Suspected dementia, the eye and the ‘mind’s eye’: How primary care eye specialists could support early identification of Alzheimer’s Disease and its variants.

Authors: Claire Rowley and Julia Cook

Publication: The Neuropsychologist (BPS)

Issue 14, Oct 2022, pages 8-17

• Title: The neuropsychological impact of vitamin B12 deficiency and its relevance to assessment of suspected dementia

Authors: Claire Rowley and Julia Cook

Publication: Memory Services National Accreditation Programme (MSNAP)

Issue 23, Dec 2022, pages 4-5

• Title: Suspected dementia, the eye and the ‘mind’s eye’: How primary care eye specialists could support early identification of Alzheimer’s disease and its variants.

Authors:

Publication: The Neuropsychologist, 14, 8-17.

• Title: Do service-users find the outcome of Mild Cognitive Impairment useful? A summary of Blatchford & Cook’s (2020) systematic review

Authors: Rowley, C., Cook, J. & Blatchford, L.

• Title: Young Onset Dementia in the Early Intervention Dementia Service: a service review of referral and outcome data

Authors: Emma Bick (Assistant Psychologist) & Dr Joanne Martin (Clinical Psychologist)

Early Intervention in Dementia Service, Worcestershire

 

A budding partnership: SW Healthcare outreach vaccination van and health research promotion - Oct/Nov 2022

It’s been a busy autumn with members of the R&D team joining the SW Healthcare vaccination van out and about in the Worcester area (only certain cohorts eligible – please check here).

From early 2021 up until summer 2022, SW Healthcare ran the 3 large Covid vaccinations centres in Worcestershire: The Artrix (Bromsgrove); St. Peter’s Baptist church, Worcester and at the Malvern showground. This autumn they’ve been at different community hubs making access to Covid boosters accessible and convenient for people.

Vaccinations are only available due to health research and EVERYONE involved in the process – study teams, Health Research Authority (HRA), National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), clinicians within NHS Trusts etc and crucially people – like you and me – participating. So us promoting and chatting about research alongside the vaccination van seemed like a good match.

We have been warmly welcomed by the vaccination van teams and it has been great for us to properly pilot outreach research promotion. Engaging with the public in a familiar, local community place for them, not just clinical settings, has been fantastic both for the public and us, and something that we will continue to build on.

Research Innovation and Improvement projects - work starting September 2022

At the end of 2021 the 3 NHS Trusts across Herefordshire and Worcestershire, Worcestershire Acute Hospitals Trust, Wye Valley NHS Trust and us – HWHCT, were successful in a project funding bid from the Clinical Research Network West Midlands (CRN WM). It is GREAT that this funding has been secured allowing us time and resource to really focus on driving research forwards across the 2 counties. Things will really get started in September so keep an eye open for updates.

The 4 projects are:

- HaRV: HeAlth Research Vehicle: A feasibility study will be completed on running a vehicle equipped to enable the research teams to promote and undertake health research off site at other medical sites i.e. GP practises, dentists etc, as well as non-medical sites such as libraries and supermarkets. The ethos of this project is very much ‘taking research to the people’ and making ourselves more visible and accessible.

A Research Van was launched in the Manchester area at the end of 2021. The below gives a flavour of what we would like to see here in Herefordshire and Worcestershire:

State-of-the-art Research Van available for research delivery across Greater Manchester (11.7.22)

A new state-of-the-art Research Van is available to support the delivery of research projects at community locations across the region. Read more here.

- SHAREO: A full evaluation of how shared office resources can be more effective. A review of each element of the set-up process AND ongoing governance requirements of organisations across several organisations to identify opportunities for efficiency and improved quality of research, with a focus on digital opportunities for efficiency. A proposal for a new operating model along with making sites more attractive to commercial research.

- MAPCOE: MAPP ing COllAbOrAting EMPOwEring sErviCEs: There is a vast untapped resource of potential engagement that we do not have capacity to identify, and in our current model, are unable to provide support to these services even if we did. We need to be able to map research interested clinicians across all professions and create a plan within each team of how they will engage with research without reliance on the research team. We need innovative ways to empower clinical services to deliver studies relevant to their clinical need. One way to do this will be to adapt the model of our research support so that we are able to increase the breadth of our services along with linking up to interested 3rd parties to ensure the population benefits from research.

- DIGENATE: Data and digital is a key theme of the CRN West Midlands Entry Plan and the NIHR. A Training Needs Analysis of digital skills in the Research Workforce across the West Midlands will be carried out. We will develop training packages that can be pre-recorded and be available online to the entire workforce across the West Midlands. We will identify further opportunities to digitalise operations to make research more efficient, shadowing the research workforce and developing solutions.

 

Award winning Research Team here at HWHCT! (7.6.22)

It was the ‘NIHR (National Institute for Health and Care Research) Clinical Research Network West Midland’s Awards’ last week which celebrates the huge range of clinical research taking place right here in the West Midlands - from COVID-19 vaccine studies to staff wellbeing on Paediatric Intensive Care Units.

This Trusts Research and Development Team is absolutely thrilled to announce that they were joint winners in the ‘Team of the Year’ award category! This award recognises the teams judged to have made the greatest contribution to clinical research in the region in the last 12 months. Members from the Research and Development Team were part of the Worcestershire Covid-19 Trial Response Team along with Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust, CRN West Midlands Primary Care and Across Teams, University of Birmingham Students, which supported the delivery of the national priority Covid Trials. Read more here: Award winning Research Team attachment June 2022.docx [docx] 986KB

 

Local participation in national research study published 21.12.21

Huge congratulations to Marti van der Linde (Community Paediatric Dietitian Worcestershire North) who, as part of a team, had their work published online in 'Nutrition in Clinical Practise' just before Christmas. This was a commercial study run by Nestle and looked to 'Monitor gastrointestinal tolerance in children who have switched to an “enteral formula with food-derived ingredients”: A national, multicenter retrospective chart review (RICIMIX study).'

To read the article and outcomes in full please click here. 

Headline national news:

Be Part of Research - now on the NHS App (Feb 2023)

The online service - Be Part of Research - which makes it easy for people to find and take part in health and care research, is now available through the NHS App in England. 

The service, run by the NIHR, helps members of the public understand what research is and what it might mean to take part, as well as showing the research currently happening across the UK. 

Through the Be Part of Research website, people can search for what trials and studies are taking place for particular health conditions they are interested in, at locations that are easy for them to get to.  Read more here.

 

National news:

Commercial study set up times reduced by a third, according to new data (26.10.23)

This increased speed and efficiency of research set-up together with improved consistency in multi-site study costing, bolsters the UK’s position as an attractive place for health and care research. Read more here.

High dose vitamin C 'ineffective' in treating Covid-19, but statin beneficial (25.10.23)

The world’s largest trial of multiple treatments for critically ill adults with Covid-19, REMAP-CAO (funded and supported by NIHR), has revealed new findings about intravenous vitamin C, and simvastatin. Read more here.

NIHR invests £1.5m in work and health research projects (20.10.23)

The funding marks the beginning of a substantial investment to boost work and health research within the UK. The research will find better ways to support working age people to remain in, return to, and leave work healthier and happier. Read more here.

Amitriptyline helps relieve IBS symptoms: NIHR-funded study (17.10.23)

Amitriptyline is commonly used at low doses for a range of health concerns. Results from the ATLANTIS trial found it improves IBS symptoms too. Read more here.

World-first trial of gene therapy to cure children with rare type of genetic deafness begins (11.10.23)

Children born with hearing loss due to the genetic condition auditory neuropathy will be given a pioneering gene therapy in a new trial. Read more here.

New NIHR partnership aims to increase research into motor neurone disease (10.10.23)

A new partnership between the NIHR and the Motor Neurone Disease (MND) Association has been set up in a bid to speed up the discovery of new treatments and insights into motor neurone disease. Read more here.

Study funded by NIHR highlights inequalities in access to green spaces and mental health (10.10.23)

The study team’s findings highlighted the beneficial role of greenness and access to green or blue spaces in reducing socioeconomic-related inequalities in mental health. Read more here.

Innovative new technology should be offered to pregnant women with diabetes (6.10.23)

Those are the findings from a newly-published study, jointly funded by the NIHR and the Medical Research Council (MRC). Read more here.

Specialist GP healthcare models shown to help care for homeless more effectively than regular services (6.10.23)

The NIHR-funded HEARTH study is the largest of its kind in the UK and involved 363 single homeless people in England. The results are published in the journal Health and Social Care Delivery Research. Read more here.

New research Collection provides insights for women and breast cancer screening (5.10.23)

This Collection highlights recent NIHR-funded research into breast cancer risk and brings together a selection of studies that have investigated breast cancer risk and screening. Read more here.

Research identifies potential treatments for children with rare genetic conditions (4.10.23)

Rare genetic conditions of blood vessels can cause lifelong and disabling symptoms like seizures and impaired development. Read more here.

New NIHR-supported malaria vaccine recommended by WHO (3.10.23)

The R21/Matrix-M malaria vaccine can be manufactured at scale and has the potential to save lives globally. Read more here.

NIHR launches new national service to support researchers at every stage of their research journey (2.10.23)

The NIHR has awarded £97.5 million over five years to fund its new Research Support Service. Read more here.

NIHR awards £2m funding for communities and researchers to work together to tackle health and care challenges (28.9.23)

These new projects place communities on an equal footing with researchers to lead research projects together. Read more here.

NEWS:

For all past editions please click back and view in News Archive.

 

CRN (Clinical Research Network) Connect newsletters

Monday 20.11.23  Monday 13.11.23   Monday 6.11.23 Monday 23.10.23 Monday 16.10.23Monday 9.10.23Monday 2.10.23 Monday 25.9.23 Monday 18.9.23 Monday 11.9.23 Monday 4.9.23

 

NHS Research and Development Forum newsletters

October 2023: NHS R&D Forum Professional Development Bulletin (mailchi.mp) August 2023: NHS R&D Forum Professional Development Bulletin (mailchi.mp); July 2023; June 2023; May 2023; April 2023; March 2023

 

Be Part of Research Newsletter

Autumn (October)Summer (July) 2023 Spring (April) 2023

 

Clinical Research Practitioner (CRP) Directory Bulletin ( Homepage - Clinical Research Practitioners Directory - NIHR (ahcs.ac.uk))

September 2023 July 2023 May 2023 March 2023 Jan/Feb 2023

 

Health Research Authority (HRA) Updates

November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023

 

UK Community Nursing Research Forum (hosted by the Queen's Nursing Institute)

November newsletterOctober newsletter September newsletter July newsletter June newsletter May newsletter April newsletter March Newsletter

 

Applied Research Collaborations (ARC’s) newsletter

October 2023September 2023August 2023July 2023

 

Join Dementia Research newsletter

Spring 2023

 

Training

Click here for training.

Archive of local publications:

HWHCT Research and Development Newsletters

June 2022: June 2022 .pdf [pdf] 725KB

April 2022: April 2022 update.pdf [pdf] 738KB

February 2022: February 2022 update.pdf [pdf] 324KB

Christmas 2021: Research newsletter Christmas 2021.pdf [pdf] 4MB

Autumn 2021: Research quarterly newsletter Autumn 2021.pdf [pdf]

Summer 2021: Research quarterly newsletter summer 2021.pdf [pdf] 741KB

 

Clinical Research Network West Midlands (CRN WM) Bulletin (2023 editions)

2.6.23: CRN WM Bulletin #78 (campaign-archive.com) 19.5.23: CRN WM Bulletin #77 (campaign-archive.com) 5.5.23: CRN WM Bulletin #76 (campaign-archive.com) 14.4.23: CRN WM Bulletin #75 (campaign-archive.com) 31.3.23: CRN WM Bulletin #74 (campaign-archive.com)17.3.23: CRN WM Bulletin #73 (campaign-archive.com) 3.3.23: CRN WM Bulletin #72 (campaign-archive.com) 17.2.23: CRN WM Bulletin #71 (campaign-archive.com) 3.2.23: CRN WM Bulletin #70 (campaign-archive.com) 6.1.23: CRN WM Bulletin #69 (campaign-archive.com)

 

CRN WM (Clinical Research Network West Midlands) Wellbeing Bulletin

Grit and Determination - May 2023 Mental Health Awareness Week - Anxiety Wellbeing Bulletin - May 2023 Doing our bit - April 2023 Wellbeing Bulletin - April 2023 Wellbeing Bulletin - March 2023 Staying motivated in the winter months - February 2023 Wellbeing Bulletin - January 2023 

 

Archive of national publications

CRN (Clinical Research Network) Connect newsletters (2023 eds)

Monday 7 August 2023 Monday 31 July 2023 Monday 24 July 2023 Monday 17 July 2023 Monday 10 July 2023 Monday 3 July 2023 Monday 26 June 2023 Monday 19 June 2023 Monday 12 June 2023 Monday 5 June 2023 Monday 22 May 2023 Monday 15 May 2023 Tuesday 9 May 2023 Tuesday 2 May 2023 Monday 24 April 2023 Monday 17 April 2023 Monday 3 April 2023 Monday 27 March 2023 Monday 20 March 2023

 

NHS Research and Development Forum newsletter

May 2023 April 2023 17 April 2023 - Red for Research - Save the date! 16.6.23 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022

 

Be Part of Research Newsletter

Winter (Feb) 2023 Autumn (October) 2022 Summer (August) 2022

 

Health Research Authority (HRA) Updates

April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023

 

Clinical Research Practitioner (CRP) Directory Bulletin ( Homepage - Clinical Research Practitioners Directory - NIHR (ahcs.ac.uk))

March 2023 Jan/Feb 2023 October 2022 August 2022

 

UK Community Nursing Research Forum (hosted by the Queen's Nursing Institute)

May newsletter April newsletter March Newsletter February Newsletter January Newsletter - QNI Community Nursing Research Forum (mailchi.mp)

Hearing Nasty Voices

We were pleased to be one of the first NHS Trust’s to open this study in February 2020 and, although paused during COVID, was open through until December 2021. 3 people were recruited contributing to the 308 participants recruited in total.

HUGE thanks to teams in this Trust involved in this study who have helped broaden understanding of the potential causes of distress in voice hearers focussing on one type of experience – hearing derogatory or threatening voices. Click below to read the full report: https://academic.oup.com/schizophreniabulletin/article/49/1/151/6659785

Psychological Impact of COVID-19 - intial results from phase 1 of the study (December 2021)

The Psychological Impact of COVID-19 (phase 1) looked at the psychological impact of the first lockdown, the relaxation of lockdown rules and the compulsory face coverings period. These inital results show the varying impacts of each of the above listed periods on different population sub groups - including gender, age, ethnicity and professional groups. Please click here to read the full article.

HUGE thanks to everyone who took part.

COPE-WM: Initial findings from this study were released 19.11.21

COPE-WM was a far reaching questionnaire study available to anyone who worked in healthcare. It closed at the end of September 2021.

The study released their initial findings on 19.11.21 which included:

• Unsurprisingly those healthcare employees who had a positive COVID-19 test result were more likely to provide direct care to patients with COVID-19
• There was poor infection control at the beginning of the pandemic but effective infection control measures were implemented after this initial period
• Experience of working during the pandemic:
  • Demand as outstripping capacity
  • Peer support at work was as important as ever
  • Morally challenging decisions in the workplace
  • Mixed re-deployment experiences
• Impact on mental health:
  • Mental health deterioration experienced during the pandemic
  • Uncertainty during the pandemic
  • Mental health coping mechanisms disabled
  • Working from home as problematic for mental health
  • Positive antibody rates:
  • Prior to vaccination 46% of participants had had a COVID infection (included study participants who had answered ‘yes’ as being symptomatic who then qualified to receive an antibody test kit)
  • From December 2020 rates of antibody positivity rise dramatically following the 1^st and 2^nd dose of vaccination to 98+%
• A study coming in the new year – COCO – will further look into the issues raised here

They have only released preliminary findings including the above so we will share the full report once it’s released.

We’ve also received a request from the study regarding the follow up survey:

‘Thank you to everyone that took the time to complete the COPE-WM study baseline survey. If you completed the baseline survey and this was more than 4 months ago you should have received an email asking you to complete the follow up survey for the study. The email was sent to the email address you provided when asked for your personal email address when you completed the baseline survey. Thank you to everyone who has already completed their follow up survey.

Please be aware that for some participants the COPE-WM study emails have been filtered to their spam/junk folder – please check there if you think you should have received an email

If, however, you received a request email but have not yet completed the survey we would encourage you to do so to ensure your follow up data contributes to the study outcomes. Survey completion should take no more than 20 minutes of your time.

If you took part in the study more than 4 months ago and either have not received an email request to complete the follow up survey or remember receiving one but are no longer able to access it and would like to complete the survey please contact the study research team by email:

cope-wm@contacts.bham.ac.uk .

If you took part less than 4 months ago please keep an eye out for the email about the follow up that you should receive in the next few weeks. 

The higher the number of participants who complete their follow up survey the better the study will be able to understand the impact of COVID-19 on people working in healthcare settings.’

THANK YOU once again to everyone who took part in this study.

iMCSP (individualised Meeting Centres Support Programme) – initial findings

We were involved in this research study a few years ago so please click below for the results: CIA_A_212852 1527..1553 (dovepress.com). Thank you to those who were involved.

SYMBAD trial results - October 2021

HWHCT took part in this trial so we were really pleased to receive these results at the end of October 2021. The main results have been published in the Lancet: https://authors.elsevier.com/sd/article/S0140673621012101 but please see below for the summary outcomes:

‘In summary we found that there was no benefit in taking mirtazapine compared with placebo, there was even the possibility of harm with a marginally higher rate of mortality in the mirtazapine group. The clear conclusion from the data is that they do not support the use of mirtazapine as a treatment for agitation in dementia. Positively there was clear recovery in those that participated in both the placebo and the mirtazapine group. This means that the best thing to do clinically may be to actively monitor agitation while carrying out treatment as usual, rather than jumping to use another medication in all but the most serious of cases.

This is a result that has important implications to clinical practice, and we hope that you will join with us in disseminating the findings as widely as possible. There has been a press release: Research news - Common antidepressant should no longer be used to treat people with dementia - University of Exeter by the University of Plymouth and the team would be happy to work with your local institutions and Trusts should you wish to provide further public information. Alzheimer’s Research UK has also published an article: Antidepressant drug doesn’t improve agitation in dementia trial - Alzheimer's Research UK (alzheimersresearchuk.org) ’

HUGE thanks to everyone who was involved in this study at HWHCT.

PrEP Impact Trial – A pragmatic health technology assessment and implementation.

PrEP (HIV Pre-exposure Prophylaxis) is a medicine for HIV negative people and it can reduce the risk of catching HIV when taken as instructed. However this is currently not available through the NHS.

PrEP is made up of two drugs, Tenofovir and Emtricitabine. Both these drugs have been widely used for many years to treat HIV and the drug has been used by several thousands of HIV negative people worldwide to reduce the risk of HIV.

To plan a PrEP programme in England, NHS England and Local Authorities carried out research to find out:

• How many people attending sexual health clinics need PrEP?
• How many of these start PrEP?
• How long do they need PrEP for?

In this Trust the study ran across the 3 Sexual Health Services; Arrowside, John Anthony Centre and Hereford and 64 patients were recruited. All participants in this study had access to PrEP.

This study has now closed but we will share the outcomes when they are published later this year. A huge thank you to everyone who was involved.