Celebrating health and care research in Wessex

Colleagues from across the region came together to recognise and celebrate a decade of research in Wessex.

The event provided an opportunity to reflect on the progress made, celebrate achievements, say thank you, and look ahead to continued collaboration as we move to the new Regional Research Delivery Networks (RRDNs) of South Central and South West Central later this year.

Guests came from across Wessex and represented research teams from Trusts as well as primary care, community and charity partners, universities, and local councils.

Memories and highlights were shared from partner organisations demonstrating how far research has developed over the last 10 years and how collaboration has been key to its success.

With some stand out 10 year statistics for Wessex including over 1000 Wessex-led studies, more than 590,000 participants recruited and more than 850 recruiting sites, it was clear to see the research journey that we’ve all been on together.

Commenting, Kelly Adams, Deputy Chief Operating Officer for CRN Wessex: “We were delighted to celebrate with our partner organisations. Truly collaborative working isn’t easy and we’ve definitely faced challenges along the way in these last 10 years. However, what we have done is respond to these challenges together, making the very best use of the people and resources we have available to us regardless of organisational geographical boundaries. Something we should all be proud of.”

Kelly adds: “We owe a huge thanks to the Research and Development teams and delivery teams within each and every organisation for their support, expertise and enthusiasm that has helped us to offer so many opportunities for our patients and local communities to be a part of health and care research.”

Saul Faust, Clinical Director, who also spoke at the event says: “It was fantastic to be able to recognise the contribution of colleagues in Wessex. Our response to the Covid-19 pandemic was outstanding and changed the way we worked together since that time. As we move to the new Regional Research Delivery Networks later this year I am confident that we will continue to go from strength to strength and build on this amazing collaboration across the new boundaries.”