An east London NHS trust has opened a new research unit inspired by the vital work of a top critical care worker during the Covid pandemic.
The BHRUT CARES centre, which focuses on critical care, surgical, and anaesthetic research, was launched by Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals Trust (BHRUT) at Queen’s Hospital on February 24.
Critical care consultant Mandeep Phull joined the trust in 2018 with a plan to build its reputation for carrying out research.
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Ms Phull said: "The pandemic had a big impact on me. When pressure was high, it felt easiest to say no to research, but that was exactly what we needed; and it was what helped us get out of the crisis.
"We took part in lots of studies, looking at why for some people it was like a bad case of flu while others ended up in critical care. We also looked at impact on staff.
"Something in me changed when the first lifesaving Covid drugs were confirmed – especially as we had been using these to help our patients."
The unit grew out of a departmental restructure that brought together the trust’s surgical, anaesthetics, and critical care teams. It aims to support the wider research and development programme at BHRUT by making research a routine part of patient care.
Ms Phull said: "We thought it would be lovely to bring our strengths together and form a research unit, supporting our overall research and development team.
"We’re a place where research should be happening; we have a diverse, ageing population; one of the few surgical hubs in the country; a large intensive care unit; neurology centre; as well as lots of talented clinicians who are keen to develop academically.
"We want to make research part of how we deliver care to our patients."
The team already has research leads for each area and are working alongside a patient public information group to ensure patients voices are heard.
Their initial plans are to continue embedding research across the trust, aligning its work to local and national need, developing research leaders, and collaborating with partners.
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