Health and Care Research Wales announces latest round of researcher funding awards

Health and Care Research Wales has announced the recipients of its latest funding awards today (1 October 2024).

The funding has been awarded to researchers not only for their individual projects but also to support the development of their careers as researchers across a variety of topics, including trauma therapy, mental health in children and adolescents, primary care for unwell children, evaluating social work practice quality, and cervical screening for women who have experienced sexual violence and abuse, among others.

Seven projects will receive funding under the Integrated Funding Scheme: Arm 1 and Arm 2. Additionally, 14 individual researchers have been awarded funding through the Health and Care Research Wales Faculty under the Health and Care Research Wales/NIHR Health Research Advanced Fellowship Award, the Health and Care Research Wales/NIHR Health Research Doctoral Fellowship Award, the Health and Care Research Wales Advanced Fellowship Award and the Research Training Award.

Michael Bowdery, Head of Programmes at Health and Care Research Wales, said:

We are thrilled with the high standard of applications for project grants this year. These diverse research projects have the potential to make a significant impact on people's health and wellbeing. The quality of research in Wales will help ensure that our research community remains competitive and continues to thrive.”

Professor Monica Busse, Health and Care Research Wales Faculty Director, added:

On behalf of the Faculty, I am pleased to congratulate this talented group of award recipients. We are committed to offering comprehensive support to researchers from all backgrounds and at all stages so that they can make meaningful progress in advancing in their research careers in their chosen fields.”

A full list of funding awards and recipients is below:

Health and Care Research Wales – Project Awardees

Integrated Funding Scheme - Arm 1: Translational and Clinical Research

Dr William Pickrell - Swansea University          

Functional/Dissociative Seizures in Wales          

Start date: 1 October 2024 (£243,980)

Dr Catrin Lewis - Cardiff University

Feasibility randomised controlled trial of Spring PGD, a digital guided self-help programme for prolonged grief disorder (PGD)

Start date: 1 October 2024 (£267,884)

Integrated Funding Scheme - Arm 2: Health and Social Care Services and Public Health Research

Dr Sarah Wallace - University of South Wales

Listening is a big step: Co-developing a multi-agency framework with Black and Minority Ethnic women for Violence Against Women, Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence

Start date: 1 October 2024 (£329,726)

Professor Ceri Battle - Swansea Bay University Health Board

A mixed methods study to develop and pilot a Competency Assessment Tool to support therapists in the care of patients with bluntCHest trauma: CATCh Study

Start date: 1 October 2024 (£185,219)

Dr Phillip Smith - Cardiff University

Exploring the role of personal advisors in Wales: A co-produced study with care-experienced young people

Start date: 1 October 2024 (£314,999)

Dr Benjamin Gray - Public Health Wales

Reducing substance use-related harm among people in prison and on their release: A qualitative study

Start date: 1 October 2024 (£256,840.40)

Dr Dorothya Cserzo - Cardiff University

How do young people, parents and social workers assess the quality of social work practice? A comparative judgement analysis of direct work with families

Start date: 1 October 2024 (£283,101)

 

Health and Care Research Wales Faculty – Personal Awardees

Health and Care Research Wales/NIHR Health Research Advanced Fellowship Award

Professor Rhiannon Owen - Swansea University

Rethinking hEalth policy in MultimorbidITy (REMIT): a population-based approach

Start date: 1 October 2024 (£643,885)

Dr Ceryl Davies - Bangor University

Measuring the impact of enhancing care provision in cervical screening for women in Wales, England and Australia who have experienced sexual violence and abuse

Start date: 1 October 2024 (£538,117)

Health and Care Research Wales/NIHR Health Research Doctoral Fellowship Award

Dr Thomas Purchase - Cardiff University

IncorporAting parental health aDVOcaCy when mAnaging unwell Children in primarY care (ADVOCACY): a multi-methods systems approach to co-develop a complex intervention

Start date: 1 October 2024 (£525,594)

Health and Care Research Wales Advanced Fellowship award

Dr Arthur Morris - Cardiff University

Unleashing Modern Genomics for Precision Public Health Surveillance of Cryptosporidium

Start date: 1 October 2024 (£398,334)

Dr Martin Scurr - Cardiff University

Enhanced immunological assessment of influenza vaccine efficacy in immunocompromised patients

Start date: 1 October 2024 (£548,312)

Dr Kai Thomas - Cardiff University

Improving awareness, understanding, and support for neurodivergent and gender diverse adults with eating disorders in Wales

Start date: 1 October 2024 (£446,416)

Dr Amy Joanne Lynham - Cardiff University

Cardiff ONline Cognitive Assessment (CONCA): An online tool for clinical monitoring of cognition in patients with psychosis     

Start date: 1 October 2024 (£489,116)

Health and Care Research Wales Doctoral Fellowship award

Stephen McKenna Lawson - Cardiff University

The CAMHbulance* Study: How does the largest out-of-hospital emergency health service in Wales receive, respond and resolve mental health crises in young people? *CAMH = Child and Adolescent Mental Health

Start date: 1 October 2024 (£215,497)

Research Training Award

Katie Jane Gilmour - Velindre University NHS Trust

MRes Health Research - University of Stirling

Start date: 1 October 2024 (£16,726)

Hayley O'Brien - Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board

Clin Res Clinical Research (Part-time distance learning) - The University of Manchester  

Start date: 1 October 2024 (£25,008.50)

Bethan Phillips - Hywel Dda University Health Board

Clinical Trials (Online Learning) - The University of Edinburgh

Start date: 1 October 2024 (£30,279.39)

Rebekah Da Silva Teixeira - Aneurin Bevan University Health Board

MSc Social Research Methods (Psychology) - Cardiff University

Start date: 1 October 2024 (£17,134.40)

Ellen Turrell - Hywel Dda University Health Board

Masters in Clinical Research (MClin Res) – University of Manchester

Start date: 1 October 2024 (£21,395.47)

Emily Bratherton - Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board

Clinical and Health Research MRes - University of Southampton

Start date: 1 October (£16,390.84)