Event recognises NHS staff in Wales who supported and delivered research during pandemic and looks to the future

The contribution of Welsh health and social care research support and delivery staff was recognised at a special event last week.

Nearly 200 staff from NHS Wales, universities and other research organisations across Wales who are at the heart of the UK-wide COVID-19 research delivery effort, came together to reflect on the last year and look to the future. 

Health and Care Research Wales Support & Delivery Day 2021 was an online event for those working in the Support & Delivery service, which took place on the afternoon of Wednesday 21 April and the morning of Thursday 22 April. 

The event highlighted key achievements from the past year, such as how collaborations across the research community were set up within a week to deliver COVID-19 vaccine trials in Wales.

The event was chaired by Dr Nicola Williams, Director of Support & Delivery, and presentations celebrated the impact of Welsh health and social care research during the pandemic. 

Carys Thomas, Head of Policy in Welsh Government, and Professor Kieran Walshe, Director of Health and Care Research Wales, explored the learnings from the pandemic and the UK Government’s new vision for the future of clinical research delivery. Jayne Goodwin, National Head of Research Delivery, and Dr Andrew Freedman and Dr Orod Osanlou, Principal Investigators for the Janssen and Novavax vaccine trials respectively, gave an overview of COVID-19 vaccine delivery in Wales.

Further talks from the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR), Digital Health and Care Wales, and The Health Research Authority (HRA) emphasised the importance of collaboration across Wales and the rest of the UK. 

Dr Nicola Williams, Director of Support and Delivery at Health and Care Research Wales said: 

“From the start of the pandemic our aim was to find treatments for COVID-19 that work as fast as possible to save the lives of patients. This event acknowledges all the vital things that have been learned from the past year and looks to the future of Welsh health and social care research delivery.

“After a remarkable year, I’m grateful to so many people for the support they have given to research and the sacrifices made, whether they have worked on COVID-19 or kept other vital research going. We have discovered that we can work at a scale and pace never thought possible before. It has been exhilarating how quickly research studies have been set up and then delivered results which have improved the health and wellbeing of people in Wales.”

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

“The only way out of this pandemic has been through research. So many across the health and care sector and in universities have worked extremely hard to deliver new studies and it’s through this event that we bring those people together to say thank you. 

“Research has never been more visible and matters more now than ever before. The next challenge will be keeping up this momentum. As we look to beyond the pandemic, we want health and care research to continue to be seen as useful, important and central to patient care.”

During the event, four winners of the Health and Care Research Wales Support & Delivery Impact Awards were announced. These awards celebrate staff from the Support & Delivery Service who have gone above and beyond to make health and social care research happen over the past 12 months. 

This year, a Special Award for Outstanding Contribution to Support & Delivery, was given to Jayne Goodwin, Head of Research Delivery at Health and Care Research Wales, for the exceptional commitment she has shown to leading and delivering vital COVID-19 research. 

Jayne said: “I’m so touched and humbled to receive this special award and hear the kind words of those who nominated me. It’s been a challenging year to work in health and care research delivery, but there’s never been a year where I have been prouder to be a research nurse or prouder to be Welsh."

You can find the presentations from Support & Delivery Day here. 

The full list of the Support & Delivery Impact Award winners:

Outstanding Research Team Award
Clinical Trials Pharmacy Team
Cardiff & Vale University Health Board

Above & Beyond Award for an Outstanding Research Professional
Anne Pennington 
Trials Manager, Aneurin Bevan University Health Board

One Wales Award
Debra Evans and Suzanne Richards
Research Nurses, Swansea Bay University Health Board

Special Award for Outstanding Contribution to Support & Delivery
Jayne Goodwin, Head of Research Delivery
Health and Care Research Wales