One year in: Birmingham Health Partners drives progress in reducing bureaucracy in clinical trials
Birmingham Health Partners (BHP) is marking a year of transformative work on its Reducing Bureaucracy in Clinical Trials programme, which launched in November 2023 with the aim of establishing Birmingham a leader in delivering cutting-edge clinical research more efficiently. The ambitious initiative was established in response to the national drive for innovation, as outlined in the Lord O’Shaughnessy and Tickell reviews.
A year in, the programme has made significant progress toward streamlining clinical trial processes and developing pragmatic solutions, with active participation from our partner organisations. focusing on areas such as grants, contracting and site setup. Work is ongoing to: develop tools to help researchers navigate the complex research landscape more effectively, including piloting an e-request form; standardise template agreements across the partnership and establish standard operating procedures (SOPs) for pre-award grants; and create a consistent NHS-academic costing model.
Amy Smith, Senior Programme Lead, said: “This first year has been about laying a strong foundation for transforming how clinical trials are delivered across Birmingham. We’re particularly appreciative of the 100+ individuals who submitted responses to our survey over the summer, allowing us to understand the researcher experience and tailor our programme accordingly.
“By working collaboratively, we are making real progress in reducing the administrative burden on researchers and getting vital innovations to our patients faster. We’re excited to see what the next year brings as we continue to refine and expand this work – starting with a report on the results of our survey which we will be publishing soon, and a Town Hall event where investigators and researchers can learn more about our programme, ask questions and share their thoughts.”
Register for the online Town Hall event – Monday 9 December at 2.30pm – at the following link: https://forms.office.com/e/4Tu7Q4u1pg
This initiative comes at a pivotal time, with Lord Darzi’s independent investigation underscoring the essential role of research in preparing the NHS for the future and the newly elected Labour Government setting out bold ambitions for the NHS – including speeding up clinical trial recruitment, improving diversity, and reducing the time it takes to introduce high-impact innovations to patients. Other reforms aim to move away from hospital care to more services delivered in the community, digitising healthcare, and prioritising prevention rather than focusing only on treating illness.
At a national level, the Health Research Authority (HRA) has made strides by meeting or exceeding targets for trial setup times, and the transition from Clinical Research Networks (CRNs) to Research Delivery Networks (RDNs) on October 1st marked a shift towards research in broader health and care settings. Despite these advances, national performance indicators suggest there is still progress to be made, particularly in commercial trial setups and recruitment of first patients.
BHP remains committed to transforming Birmingham’s healthcare through high-impact innovation – delivering research that matters to patients.