May 2022 Newsletter
Date: 1 June 2022
Welcome to the Forum May 2022 Newsletter
We are looking forward to the annual #Red4Research day on Friday 17th June. This campaign was founded and is led by Sally Humphreys, Chair of the NHS R&D Forum Research Management Working Group, PhD student at University of Hertfordshire and NHS Research Nurse. The campaign is a fantastic way to raise awareness to all those working on COVID-19 and other research, the associated innovation and learning. Landmarks across the UK to lighting up red this year in support of the campaign – watch this space for details!
You can find out more about how to get involved with #Red4Research on our webpage which has various social media resources, email signatures and a video background that can be added to Team/Zooms meetings.
Let us know your plans for the day either by tagging @NHSRDForum on Twitter or emailing. You can also share your posts on the #Red4Researchg Facebook page.
Best Regards,
Shona Haining
Director, NHS R&D Forum
New R&D Forum Symposium ICS/ICB and Research
This new symposium will bring the community together to discuss the updated ways of working, good practice and shared learning on research in Integrated Care Boards (ICBs).
This will be a face to face workshop taking place on 13th October from 10am – 4pm. The programme will be released shortly, so for now save the date in your diaries. Any questions please contact: info@rdforum.org.uk
Monthly Forum Working Group Update
Hello, my name is Rachael Dowling, Head of Research Communications at the University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust. I chair the NHS R&D Forum Research Communications Working Group, which formed in June 2021, and meets virtually every 2-3 months. We are a group of around 60 members who hold communications and engagement roles in NHS organisations, NIHR infrastructure, regulatory bodies and other related organisations.
The group provides an excellent platform for members to share best practice, provide support and influence communications and engagement policies and campaigns.
Our current priorities are to:
- Identify suitable KPIs for research communications that embed the work of our members into research design, delivery and dissemination
- Strengthen the participant recruitment sections of ethics documents so that opportunities for volunteers to participate in studies are maximised
- Review and draw together best practice guidance for plain English standards in participant-facing documents, leaflets and other materials
May has been an extremely busy month for us, with International Clinical Trials Day. We are also looking forward to celebrating #Red4Research on the 17th June!
New members are always welcome. Please email me on rachael.dowling@uhl-tr.nhs.uk if you or a colleague wish to join the mailing list.
#Red4Research is Back
#Red4Research Day is on Friday 17th June 2022 and aims to get as many people as possible wearing red to demonstrate their support and appreciation for all those participating, undertaking and supporting COVID-19 and other research. It is an opportunity to showcase the phenomenal work, learning legacy and the new innovative research system/techniques that have arisen. None of which would be possible without all people involved – people make research happen.
To find out more and to download the #Red4Research resources, please visit the R&D Forum website to get involved.
Thank you for supporting research.
The R&D Forum/UKRD Joint Research Finance looking for feedback on a number of items
- Finance guidance – we welcome feedback from this initial document that is out for consultation https://www.ukrdleaders.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/UK-Research-Finance-Guidance-v1.6.pdf Feedback by July for inclusion in the annual review September. Please send feedback to info@rdforum.org.uk and this will be signposted to the R&D Forum UK Research Finance group.
- The Annual R&D Finance survey will be sent out again in May, please look out for it and try to take the time to respond as everyone’s contribution really does make a difference.
- If anyone is interested in becoming a member of a regional Research finance network, do let the UK Research Finance Group know and we can point you to your nearest lead. The current contact email is UKRDLeaders@uhs.nhs.uk.
Reminder – Credit Accounts from RDF20 Bookings
The credits from the bookings that were made for the cancelled RDF20 Conference are available to be used for booking onto Training Courses and Symposia. The credits are allocated to the organisation and not the individual. The person who made the booking for RDF20 has been given access details for them to be able to use the credits to book any person from within the same organisation onto NHS R&D Forum events. The bookings do not need to be for the same person(s) booked for RDF20. Please contact the person who made the RDF20 booking to access the credits.
If you have RDF20 credit, you can use this to make booking for any future events detailed on the schedule for this year or for RDF23. Bookings must bemade by the end of December 2022 to use the credit.
HIVE Mind Meeting – Help Needed
The R&D Forum Hive Mind meetings take place each month for 60 minutes. We are keen this valuable forum continues and we are looking for volunteers to rotate as the Chair, alongside the current chairs. This will help secure the future of the monthly Hive Mind meeting and involvement would be estimated to chair once every quarter. There is minimal involvement needed – It is really to help the flow of the conversation during the session and bring any suggested topics to the meeting.
If this is something you would be interested in doing, or if you have any further questions, please contact Jeannie McKie (j.mckie@nhs.net) from Rotherham Doncaster and South Humber NHS Foundation Trust.
Please note the meeting for June is scheduled for Tuesday 7th June @ 11am due to the Bank Holidays.
Call for Trainers
The NHS R&D Forum is seeking applicants to become trainers, at the moment all courses are being run online, but we do hope to return to face to face training in the future, so applicants should be prepared to travel.
COURSE TRAINERS
A course trainer must fulfil the criteria below and be available to deliver the course at least once a year:
- Have at least 2 years work experience in the subject area and be able to demonstrate excellent interpersonal, facilitation and training skills.
- Are suitably experienced to be able to answer questions around the topic area and to recognise where their knowledge is limited that further information is required.
- Are adept at understanding the different needs/perspective of trainees and the health and care research management landscape. This is particularly important as our courses are delivered to many different types of organisation and across the UK.
- Are very team focussed and able to work well with others
- Are professional and represent the NHS R&D Forum at all times
For more information and application forms, please contact allyson@rdforum.org.uk
Local Capacity and Capability for Research
30th May – 5 places remaining
A one-day course designed to provide an understanding of the requirements of an NHS organisation when determining whether to take part in a particular research study as a host. It explains the principles of good study set up, the information required by the R&D office and where it can be obtained. It introduces delegates to the various systems and documents associated with research and also provides some guidance on developing relationships with key support departments and stakeholders within an NHS organisation.
Book here
Archiving Masterclass
13th June
An excellent course providing expert insights in the practicalities of research archiving procedures.
End of study procedures are the domain of both the NHS and the Sponsor and so if you are a Named archivist or just need to understand more about how to firm up your procedures then you should consider this one-day event.
Essentials of NHS Research
5th & 6th September
The updated material includes a whole new look package of essentials for anyone looking for a complete overview of NHS R&D management.
This is a two day course. The first day covers the overall research landscape and the legislation and regulations that govern it, as well as the various aspects of research management and governance. Day two concentrates more on the design, development and management of a research project, as well as looking at wider issues of leadership and strategy. The course is a mixture of traditional trainer presentation with interactive activities and discussions.
Regulatory Inspection Ready
12th September
This one-day course is aimed at those who deliver research in a healthcare setting either in a Sponsor team or as a Host, and that maybe subject to regulatory inspection. Preparation for Inspection is critical but compliance driven from preparation rather than from quality systems can lead to poor practice and Inspection findings.
RDF 2022 Events Schedule
To view what else we have planned for the rest of the year, please click below. Courses up to March are only available to book right now, but we will open the booking pages for April & May, events in due course.
European Institutions risk steep FDA fines over unreported clinical trial results
Major European institutions are at risk of steep FDA fines for violating American transparency laws, a review by TranspariMED has found.
Some of the institutions affected have an excellent disclosure record on the European trial registry EudraCT, but do not routinely upload clinical trial results onto the American ClinicalTrials.gov trial registry.
This exposes them to the risk of accidentally breaking U.S. law and facing fines that could run into millions of dollars.
Update to ICT Costing Tool
Functionality changes have been made to the NIHR’s commercial interactive Costing Tool (iCT) in order to improve usability of the system for the primary care community.
Following a review of the commercial costing tool by a working group, comprising colleagues across primary care and different regions, a number of recommended changes have now been made. As a result, primary care costs are more accurately reflected in the tool – improving the accuracy of the tool for use in primary care.
The changes below were implemented in April 2022:
- Indirect Costs have been standardised at 70% for all settings (this was previously only the case for secondary care)
- Medical out-of-hours costs are now included specifically for primary care (previously only available for pharmacy)
Health and Care Bill granted Royal Assent in milestone for healthcare recovery and reform
- The Health and Care Bill has today received Royal Assent by Her Majesty The Queen, enacting the most significant health legislation in a decade into law
- It will ensure the NHS can rebuild from the pandemic and tackle the coronavirus (COVID-19) backlog, harness the best ways of working and ensure people are benefitting from more joined-up care
- Long-term plans for recovery and reform are backed by £36 billion over the next three years through the Health and Care Levy
The act introduces measures to tackle the COVID-19 backlogs and rebuild health and social care services from the pandemic, backed by £36 billion over the next 3 years through the Health and Care Levy. It will also contain measures to tackle health disparities and create safer, more joined-up services that will put the health and care system on a more sustainable footing.
Arrangements for handling changes, amendments, or closure of studies as a result of the DHSC initiative to revitalise the NHS research portfolio
On 22 March 2022, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) issued an important communication to research sponsors and funders to specify that urgent action must be taken to address the current research delivery challenges in the NHS in England.
The communication provides guidance for sponsors who need to act because of this review and have now decided to amend or close their studies. It is important to remember that regularly reviewing the continuation of any study is an important component in ensuring it remains ethically robust.
The amendment tool provides guidance on the relevant options to select for each scenario.
May 2022 – Provider Threshold announcement FY 2022-2023 (England)
Research in the NHS is vital to improving services, care and outcomes for patients. As part of the UK’s Clinical Research Recovery, Resilience and Growth programme, which aims to deliver the Government’s research vision, NHS England and NHS Improvement (NHSE/I) are committed to supporting and enabling the NHS to place research at the heart of its work.
Funding Excess Treatment Costs (ETCs) is one of the ways that NHSE/I, aided by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), supports non-commercial research in the NHS. There is no change to the system for ETCs in other nations, which are already streamlined.
NIHR Updates
- Research Reset third letter issued and process launched
- Link with your Local CRN to get sight of new commercial research for your organisation
- REMINDER: Use of the Non-commercial Portfolio Application service
- NIHR MOOCS (free to access online courses)
- NIHR Learn Insights
- Are you looking for new ways to develop the next generation of Research Delivery Leads?
- National contract value review (NCVR): Operational guidance published
- NIHR’s Race Equality Framework
- 1,000 sign ups to the Associate Principal Investigator (PI) Scheme
- Under-served communities webpage
- Established Clinician and Early Career Clinician 2022 awards announced
- Mental health research service user and carer involvement award
Contacting the R&D Forum
As a reminder, should you need to contact the Forum the best way is via email which is info@rdforum.org.uk
The latest job vacancies displayed on our website.
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