Leading NHS scientist visits Centre for Healthcare Science

Deputy Chief Scientific Officer for NHS England Professor Dee Ripley visited the Colchester Campus to help celebrate the first anniversary of our Centre for Healthcare Science, hear about progress so far and discuss how to respond to challenges in the sector. 

The anniversary was marked with a special workshop involving Essex academics and healthcare scientists from across the region.

Dean of Integrated Health and Care Partnerships Professor Vicky Joffe said: "The University is very proud to be a centre of healthcare science in the East of England. We are grateful for the investment that has been made by NHS England to enable us to support the existing healthcare scientists in the region, develop the future workforce, and raise the profile and awareness of the roles and responsibilities of healthcare scientists and the vital function they have in providing healthcare.”

Essex Vice-Chancellor Professor Maria Fasli, who attended the event, said: "We are committed to supporting the NHS workforce development plan and in particular developing the healthcare professionals that are desperately needed.

"As part of the work of the Centre, we want to ensure that not only we equip professionals with the right skills but we are also undertaking novel research to ensure healthcare science practice in the region is cutting edge, revolutionary and tailor-made to the needs of patients."

Healthcare science includes over 40 areas of applied science, with healthcare scientists supporting vital NHS services from diagnosis through to treatment. Healthcare scientists are integral to patient care and participate in around 80% of the clinical decisions made in the NHS while they are often at the forefront of clinical and technological transformation and innovation.The University of Essex has a strong background in delivering healthcare education and working with NHS partners.

The Centre for Healthcare Science builds on the excellent work already underway in the East of England to develop new courses in other areas of healthcare science, encourage school students to consider healthcare roles through outreach activities, and support current NHS staff by offering additional Continuing Professional Development courses in new areas.

Professor Ripley, who is also Head of the National School of Healthcare Science, discussed the issues facing the NHS including workforce development and training in healthcare science. Other speakers included professor of healthcare science at Essex, Professor Berne Ferry, who outlined the Centre work over the past year, and Olivia Solanke, who explained the innovative outreach projects developed by the Centre to inspire school students to start thinking about careers in healthcare science. 

Professor Fasli said the University had focused on health as a priority area, extending its lab and specialist facilities while growing its education and research capacity including within the School of Life Sciences, School of Health and Social Care, and School of Sport, Rehabilitation and Exercise Sciences. She emphasised that health at Essex was interdisciplinary - stretching across technology, data science, genomics and microbiology plus healthy lifestyles, policy development and human rights.

Professor Fasli said: "We look forward to continuing to work with partners and strengthen our links. We value the partnerships that we have created in our region and beyond and it is only through collaboration that we can strengthen the provision of healthcare in the region and nationally."

The workshop included presentations from healthcare science professionals from across the East of England including Lizz Grimwade - Strategic Workforce Lead for East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust (ESNEFT); Craig Jamieson and Paul White from Cambridge University Hospitals (CUH) NHS Foundation Trust; Sarah Heard - Consultant Clinical Scientist and Head of Nuclear Medicine Physics at CUH; and Sam Clarke - Principal Cardiac Physiologist at ESNEFT.