Congratulations to Professor Ceri Battle

A pioneering researcher has been congratulated after becoming an Honorary Professor in Trauma and Emergency Care with Swansea University - the first woman in Wales, and only the fourth in the UK, to achieve the position.

Professor Ceri Battle, who has a Health Research Fellowship from Health and Care Research Wales, allowing her to focus on her specialty chest trauma work, said it was an ‘honour’ to have been awarded the accolade, having worked in clinical academia and as the lead researcher on three national trials relating to chest injuries.

One, called STUMBL2, is to evaluate a score-based diagnostic tool that Professor Battle created to identify patients most at risk of developing complications, and which is now being used around the world.

Professor Battle said:

Although I do academic work at the university, it is an honorary professorship as I am employed by Morriston Hospital as a physiotherapist.

I have had an honorary contract with the university for a few years. I started as a research fellow then an associate professor. Then when it came time to reapply, they asked me to apply for the professorship.

There was a full appointment process and my application and references had to go before a panel.

To achieve the appointment, I had to hit certain criteria. These include more than £1.5 million in grants and around 100 peer reviewed publications.

But it is not just about funding and publications. A lot of it is to do with the international impact your work is having, so my work on the STUMBL Score played a big part in my application.”

It is an honour – not just the appointment itself, and being the first woman in Wales to achieve it, but hopefully to be a role model for other aspiring clinical academics.”

Professor Kieran Walshe, Director of Health and Care Research Wales, added:

On behalf of the research community here in Wales, I am delighted to congratulate Ceri for her outstanding work and tireless commitment which has resulted in a very well deserved Honorary Professorship from Swansea University. We are proud to support Ceri and many others like her through funded research, and I look forward to seeing the results of her studies and specialty interests into chest trauma.”

Professor Battle is co-specialty lead for trauma and emergency care research in Wales, and co-leads the Council of Allied Health Professionals in Wales.

She is chief investigator on STUMBL, ELECT and CoPACT – all chest trauma studies running across the UK.