Championing the best of Welsh research at Health and Care Research Wales’ annual conference

Researchers from across Wales have once again been recognised for their work at the Health and Care Research Wales Awards 2024. 

The awards recognise Wales’ innovative and inspirational research community across four categories - Public Involvement, Health and Social Care Impact, Rising Research Star and Innovation in Practice, with a fifth award being given for the most engaging exhibition at the conference. 

A panel of judges from across the sector decided the winners in each category, who have all been awarded funding of up to £250 to attend a training course, conference, workshop or similar event to develop an area of their research skillset. 

They were presented at the Health and Care Research Wales’ conference on 10 October, by Professor Kieran Walshe, outgoing Director of Health and Care Research Wales, who said: 

“These awards recognise the very best of our research community and showcase the work that is making a difference to our communities here in Wales. 

“Submissions were of a very high standard and as always, our judges had a difficult task in picking the overall winners. 

“I’d like to congratulate everyone who has been recognised with these awards, whether as winners or runners up, and to those too who were highly commended for their submissions.” 

Health and Care Research Award winners 2024 

Public Involvement Award – People’s Experience Survey, CEDAR at Cardiff & Vale University Health Board – Kathleen Withers 

This award recognises the very best use of public involvement in a health or social care research study, using the UK Standards for Public Involvement.   

The award went to Kathleen Withers from CEDAR at Cardiff and Vale University Health Board for her work on the People’s Experience Survey, which supports service improvement work in NHS Wales.   

The judging panel said that the application was exceptional, clearly meeting all six UK Standards for Public Involvement. The panel was especially impressed by the innovative involvement methods, such as interviews, focus groups, and multiple rounds of survey testing, all of which helped shape the project. The submission also showed a strong commitment to inclusivity by engaging a diverse range of organisations and extending involvement to family and friends. The use of British Sign Language (BSL) was a standout feature, promoting even greater inclusivity in shaping the research.  

Kathleen said: “This was a fantastic piece of work and we were really thrilled to be involved.  It was a Wales-wide project supported financially by Welsh Government and we had involvement from patient experience leads across Wales; we knew it was really important to get the first hand experiences of people in Wales to find out what was important to them.” 

Health and Social Care Impact Award – BRIGHT Trial – Nicola Innes 

This award recognises the difference Welsh research is making to people’s everyday lives and the difference people can make to that research.      

The NIHR-funded BRIGHT Trial, was a multi-component behaviour change intervention comprising an oral health lesson and twice-daily text messages. The intervention aim was to increase toothbrushing in secondary school children, reducing tooth decay, and was compared to usual education and no texts. 

The judges said that the winning application showed impact by using an unexpected outcome of the project to help teachers deliver lesson plans in secondary schools, and the impact that this has had on the support for oral health lessons.    

Accepting the award on Nicola’s behalf, her colleague Dr Heather Lundbeck said: “As a dentist I’m delighted to see oral health being acknowledged because it’s often an area of healthcare that can be overlooked. So I think it’s really amazing to see the acknowledgement of working with communities around oral health and the acknowledgement of all of the hard work of my colleagues.” 

Rising Research Star Award – Samuel Chawner 

This award is for researchers who are Rising Research Stars, who are in the early stages of their health or social care research career, are making significant contributions to their field, and are an emerging future leader.  

The panel were impressed with the level of early career researchers that we have in Wales who are making a difference, and choosing the winner was a very difficult decision to make. 

The winner of The Rising Research Star was Samuel Chawner from Cardiff University. The panel commended Samuel’s innovative and impactful programme of research which is funded by a prestigious Wellcome Trust Career Development Award. They noted a true commitment to diversity and inclusion and support of the wider research community which will be inspirational to the next generation of researchers in Wales.   

Samuel said: “It’s been a huge surprise and it’s really an honour to win this award.  I hope it raises awareness of avoidant restrictive food intake disorder and developing this research.  So many individuals living with ARFID, their families and clinicians have told me of the struggles they face, and the need for research to improve care and support."

 

Innovation in Practice Award – Developing capacity to deliver First in Human (FiH) clinical trials of investigational medicinal products – Orod Osanlou  

This award recognises the innovation in practice and the value that teams and individuals have made in their field of practice and to people’s lives.  

The winner of the Innovation in Practice Award was Orod Osanlou from the North Wales Clinical Research Facility Team, for his work on setting up capability for delivering First in Human (FiH) clinical trials of investigational medicinal products.  

The panel said that Orod’s application was very impressive with clear impact. It clearly outlined what the team is doing, how they have achieved it and the impact it is having now and in the future. The plans for spreading this work across sites in Wales are also very clear, and it was positive to hear about Wales developing capability for first in human trials, which is extremely important.  

Accepting the award on Orod’s behalf, his colleague Lynne Grundy said: “We’re delighted to receive the award, it’s a team effort it’s great to be able to deliver first-in-human trials in Wales.” 

Most Engaging Exhibition Award       

The exhibition saw 23 stands from across the Health and Care Research Wales research community, highlighting research from health boards to children’s and adult social care, to cancer research and cardiovascular. Voted throughout the day by delegates, the award for the most engaging and creative stand was the Wales Gene Park.