New website launched to promote value of clinical academic careers

Health and Care Research Wales is proud to endorse the Clinical Academic Training Forum’s (CATF) new website: CATCH, the Clinical Academic Training & Careers Hub, which is the one stop shop for information on academic careers.

Clinical academics align cutting edge research with real-time patient care

Clinical academics are essential to the UK’s science and research performance, an area in which the UK currently excels, with 54% of our output considered world leading.

The impact of this can be seen in our scientific response to the coronavirus pandemic, as from the development of vaccines to new therapeutics and technologies, the UK is leading the global recovery effort.

Clinical academics form an important part of our research workforce and if the UK is to maintain its position as a scientific global leader then, as highlighted in the Government’s R&D Roadmap, it must “attract, retain and develop the talented, diverse people and teams that are essential to delivering our vision.”

The number of clinical academics is falling

Recruitment into clinical academia has not matched the rate of academics entering retirement, leading to a ‘leaking’ pipeline of an essential workforce. It is therefore vital that the sector works together to promote the unique opportunities available through clinical academia and inspire talented individuals to embark on an academic career.

A new online clinical academic careers resource

CATCH is an initiative that hopes to help address this issue. CATF, which works to provide strategic coordination of UK clinical academic training pathways, conducted a scoping exercise which concluded that there was no resource available that contained all relevant information for clinical academic trainees in a single site and that there was a paucity of information for trainees from other clinical backgrounds such as dentistry and nursing.

It is hoped that the launch of CATCH can begin to remedy this and help early career researchers and any health professional interested in academia navigate what is often perceived as a complicated career path.

Head of Health and Care Research Wales Support & Delivery Centre, Helen Grindell said: “We’re proud to endorse the new website and the CATCH online careers resource. We champion talented members of staff across Wales who support and deliver life-changing research and encourage others to consider this as a worthwhile career choice.

“This national one stop-shop will make it as easy as possible for our talented professionals to access a wealth of information on combining a clinical and academic career and further developing their careers, whilst providing the best service possible to our Welsh patients.”

The development of CATCH has been led by Professor Jane Norman, Dean for the Faculty of Health Sciences at the University of Bristol and Chair of the Medical Schools Council Research Committee. Of its launch, Professor Norman said:

“We are really excited to be able to launch CATCH, our new online clinical academic careers resource. This is the result of an extensive consultation with clinical researchers and educators across the UK. Our hope is that it will showcase the vast array of career options in clinical academia, across many professional disciplines, and the unique set of challenges and rewards they bring.

“We look forward to working with stakeholders and users to further develop the resource and ensure that finding the right information is not considered a barrier for anyone interested in learning about a clinical academic career.”

Professor Paul Stewart, Chair of the Clinical Academic Training Forum and Vice President (Clinical) of the Academy of Medical Sciences, said:

“The UK is renowned for its ability to attract and develop brilliant researchers and it is fundamental that we tap into this talent pool and promote the value of clinical academia and its benefits to society. Recovery from the pandemic will not be an easy task and we will rely on the fresh perspectives of the new workforce to help rebuild and improve our delivery of healthcare and drive improvements in patient care.

“CATCH is a fantastic new resource for individuals interested in a clinical academic career. I hope that those visiting the site take away the exciting opportunities and career progression available in clinical academia.”

Collaborative effort

Inspiring and building the clinical academic workforce of the future will require collaboration across organisations, from universities, NHS trusts, funding bodies, research charities, Government and many more. The development of CATCH was a collaborative effort and the site is endorsed by the following organisations:

Academy of Medical Royal Colleges

Academy of Medical Sciences

Association of Medical Research Charities

British Medical Association

Medical Academic Staff Committee (BMA)

Conference of Postgraduate Medical Deans

Council of Deans of Health

Dental Schools Council

Department of Health and Social Care

Health and Care Research Wales

Health Education and Improvement Wales

Health Education England

Medical Research Council

Medical Schools Council

National Institute for Health Research

NHS Education for Scotland

Northern Ireland Medical and Dental Training Agency

University Hospital Association

Wellcome Trust