Members of the public can hear about groundbreaking studies and meet leading researchers at Royal Brompton & Harefield NHS Foundation Trust’s fifth annual heart and lung research open day on July 15.
Researchers at the Trust play a leading role on the global medical research stage. This was demonstrated in the most recent RAND analysis of influential biomedical and health research, which showed that experts at Royal Brompton and Harefield hospitals produced more highly cited publications (HCPs) about respiratory and critical care medicine than any other NHS trust in England. The report found that the proportion of Trust research papers about cardiovascular medicine quoted in subsequent studies was joint highest, while research about allergy was third highest.
The research open day will be held at Royal Brompton Hospital as part of a programme celebrating the 10th anniversary of the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR), the research arm of the NHS which helps fund the Trust’s research.
Visitors will learn about research studies in which hundreds of patients and healthy volunteers participate each year at the Trust, with its academic partner, Imperial College London, and see how this research leads to significant medical breakthroughs and the development of new treatments.
They can experience what it is like to be a cardiologist by navigating a simulated heart to fix a heart rhythm problem, see what 3D printing tells us about lungs and explore the role genes play in heart and lung health. Visitors can also find out about some of the latest research through other interactive demonstrations, activities, stands and round-table discussions.
Funding for the event has been provided by both the NIHR Royal Brompton Respiratory and Cardiovascular Biomedical Research Units (BRUs).
Julia Coffey, public involvement coordinator in the Cardiovascular BRU, said:
“Research underpins a great deal of clinical work at the Trust, and one of our guiding organisational values reflects a commitment to finding and developing new treatments for heart and lung disease, for today’s patients and for future generations.
“We are keen to share our latest work with the public during what should be a fun and informative day.”
The event will take place from 11.30am until 2.00pm on Friday 15 July in the main reception and seminar rooms at Royal Brompton Hospital.
For further information about the Trust’s research, please visit http://www.rbht.nhs.uk/research
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For further information, please contact:
Media relations officer
Royal Brompton & Harefield NHS Foundation Trust
Tel: 020 7352 8121 ext 2237
Mobile: 07891 310 924
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Notes to editors:
1. Royal Brompton & Harefield NHS Foundation Trust is a national and international specialist heart and lung centre based in Chelsea, London and Harefield, Middlesex. The Trust helps patients from all age groups who have heart and lung problems and is the country's largest centre for the treatment of adult congenital heart disease. www.rbht.nhs.uk
2. Consistently rated amongst the world's best universities, Imperial College London is a science-based institution with a reputation for excellence in teaching and research that attracts 14,000 students and 6,000 staff of the highest international quality. Innovative research at the College explores the interface between science, medicine, engineering and business, delivering practical solutions that improve quality of life and the environment - underpinned by a dynamic enterprise culture.