New Health Research Projects to Tackle Key Challenges Facing Communities Across Cumbria

Five new projects have been awarded funding through the PCSM Research Hub's Collaborative Health Research Projects programme, supporting locally led research designed to improve patient care, strengthen NHS services and build research capacity across the county.  

The programme is delivered through a partnership between PCSM, the University of Cumbria and Imperial College London, supported by the NIHR Imperial Biomedical Research Centre (BRC). Together, these organisations are helping to bring world-class research expertise, opportunities and investment to Cumbria, ensuring research addresses the unique health needs of rural and coastal communities.  

The newly funded projects are led by teams from healthcare and academic organisations across the region, including North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust, University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust, Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust and the University of Cumbria. The studies will examine a range of health priorities, including emergency care decision-making, maternity and neonatal services, mental health, ADHD support and the use of artificial intelligence in cardiac diagnostics.  

The projects join seven studies funded earlier through the programme, meaning the PCSM Research Hub is supporting a growing portfolio of collaborative health research designed to deliver benefits for patients, healthcare professionals and communities in Cumbria.  

Professor Jonathan Weber CBE, Co-Director of the PCSM Research Hub, said: 

"These projects demonstrate the power of collaboration across Cumbria's health, care and academic  sectors. By bringing together NHS organisations, researchers, patients and local communities, we are supporting research that addresses questions that matter to the people of Cumbria and the challenges faced by those delivering care. 

Just as importantly, this programme is helping to strengthen research capacity across the county. By creating opportunities for healthcare professionals to develop research skills and build new partnerships, we are laying the foundations for a sustainable research culture that will generate evidence to improve health and care outcomes in Cumbria and beyond."  

Among the projects receiving support are studies exploring how patients can be better involved in decisions about hospital admission, how maternity leadership programmes can improve outcomes for women and families, how mental health crisis pathways can be strengthened, how talking therapies can better support adults with ADHD, and how artificial intelligence could help improve access to diagnostic heart scans.  

The projects have received funding of up to £50,000 and will run for eighteen months, with findings expected to help shape future healthcare delivery and attract further research investment to Cumbria. 

For more information about the PCSM Research Hub and its research projects, visit www.cumbriamed.ac.uk/research-projects.