New report outlines recommendations to support and develop health and social care researchers in Wales

A new vision for research career pathways has been launched today with the publication of a the Making research careers work: a review of career pathways in health and social care in Wales report - produced in collaboration with Health and Care Research Wales, Health Education and Improvement Wales and Social Care Wales.

Nurturing Welsh talent

Wales has been at the heart of some of the biggest clinical trials, not only through the pandemic but, contributing to life-changing studies into cancer, dementia, diabetes, and heart disease led by some of the most talented Welsh researchers. To build on this success, a new report was commissioned to review the current research training and development opportunities available in Wales. This report highlighted the enablers and barriers and identified recommendations to improve the support and encourage more health and social care professionals to embark on research careers.

Review of current support for researchers

A thorough review was conducted, which included contributions from various researchers at different stages in their careers. The report sets out several recommendations which aim to improve funding schemes, opportunities and training to support research career development for health and social care professionals in Wales.

Call for new faculty director

One of the key recommendations was the creation of the Health and Care Research Wales Faculty, dedicated to supporting researchers and improving research pathways in Wales.

As a result, Health and Care Research Wales is now looking to appoint a director to lead the new faculty, responsible for:

• leading the review of existing personal award schemes
• creating new funding schemes to expand opportunities and build research capacity and capability
• liaising with national funders to maximise their value and impact in Wales

Professor Kieran Walshe, Director of Health and Care Research Wales said: “As highlighted in our report, we are bringing together our investments in research career development into a new faculty initiative, and the appointment of a Director of Faculty is crucial for its success. 

“We’re looking for someone who is passionate about developing the next generation of health and social care researchers in Wales, and both keeping and attracting talented future leaders in research to work in Wales. It’s a really important step forward in improving the capacity and capability for health and social care research across Wales, and we’re looking forward to the future.”

Medical Director at Health Education and Improvement Wales, Professor Pushpinder Mangat said: “We believe that everyone working in our health care services should have the opportunity to apply their knowledge and experience to help find better ways of working, including through opportunities for staff to combine research with practice and clinical roles.

“This dedicated faculty will aim to encourage a research culture within health organisations by creating an environment where professionals are encouraged to deliver research, develop their own research and for some, go on to pursue a research-based career.”

Chief Executive at Social Care Wales, Sue Evans, said: “We’ve seen many benefits for social care staff who pursue research, as it gives them a chance to improve services to people who rely on care and support, by generating new ways to safeguard and promote independence and wellbeing. The more we are able to support professionals to use research in practice, the better we will be at defining what works best in different situations.”

Read the report in full

Read the Making research careers work: a review of career pathways in health and social care in Wales report in full.

For more information about the Director of the Health and Care Research Wales Faculty, read the job description.