Thanks to @kathbroomfield for producing the latest ResNetSLT blog.
At the end of the summer 2018, I responded to a call for volunteers who were interested in supporting Allied Health Professionals (AHPs) get into research to apply to become AHP Research Champions. This was a new joint initiative between the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) and the Council for Allied Health Professions Research (CAHPR).
In October I found out that my application had been successful and the first round of AHP research champions were announced. There are 19 Champions in total, representing each of the 15 Clinical Research Network (CRN) regions in England.
The aim of the AHP Research Champions is to encourage AHP research development across the CRN regions of England. Our main role is to act as super-connectors across the country, linking AHP research-active and AHP research-interested clinicians with opportunities, support, and with each other.
Some regions have more than one champion, and in the West of England I share the role with Sandi Derham, an OT. Most but not all of the AHPs registered with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) are represented within the network but we have been encouraged to work across professional boundaries to ensure that support is available to all AHPs.
AHP Research Champions will facilitate the achievement of the five goals set out in the CRN AHP Strategy (2018-19). The initiative also aligns with the national strategic drive to raise awareness of the skills and potential for expanding AHP roles as laid out in “AHPs into Action”. Encouraging AHPs to engage in research is also part of the NHS Long Term Plan as there is growing evidence that research active organisations get better results for patients.
Nearly six months into the scheme, and AHP Research champions have been busy networking across their localities. Most have liaised with their local CAHPR hubs and the CRN Workforce Development Leads. Others have been able to attend AHP meetings, research events and conferences to raise awareness of research and the opportunities for AHPs to get involved.
At our last Research Champion’s workshop, it became clear that different regions have very different infrastructure available to support AHPs in research. What was heartening to learn is that increasing AHP research activity, either as principle investigators, personal award holders or as deliverers of research, is high on the agenda for all the CRNs.
So, what’s next? Each of the AHP Research Champion areas has been allocated a small budget to support the role and enable the development of the network. There are a variety of activities planned to make use of this funding. Some areas are organising networking events, others are planning webinars and in the West of England we are planning to produce a film presenting local pathways into research.
There is also a sub-group of the network who are exploring tools that can be used to assess the research culture of organisations so we can evaluate local and national variation. Finally, there will be a conference in October in London: “AHPs in Research: Amplifying impact” which will showcase the impact that research active AHPs can have on healthcare organisations and patient care. This will be a free event, so keep your eyes open for more information about how to attend on social media #AHPsinResearch.
Being an AHP Research Champion has been a valuable personal experience as I have learned a lot from the energetic and inspiring fellow champs who are all at different stages of their research career and have followed different pathways into research. I was delighted to hear that the scheme has been funded for another year and would strongly encourage SLT colleagues to consider applying to join next year’s cohort.
There is plenty of scope to continue developing the network that we have initiated as well as opportunities for you to create your own impact based on your personal experience and priorities. If you have any questions about the scheme specifically, or about how to become more research active in general, please email Katherine Broomfield.