PenCLAHRC’s Operational Research team, PenCHORD (the Peninsula Collaboration for Health Operational Research and Development), are a group of specialists that assist healthcare professionals, commissioners and patients make informed decisions about change in the NHS using Operational Research (OR). The team run an annual Health Service Modelling Associates (HSMA) programme where they provide a number of health service employees from across the South West with training, a mentor and day release, one day a week, to tackle a work based research project that can be used by the NHS Trust to solve a specific issue or question.

Karl Vile, Programme Manager for...

On 5th December 2018 a broad range of delegates from the NHS, HE and related public sector organisations attended the Health Service Modelling Associates (HSMA) Presentation Seminar, the closing event of PenCHORD’s 2018 HSMA Programme. The HSMA Programme is a joint initiative between PenCHORD (PenCLAHRC’s Operational Research team) and the South West Academic Health Science Network (SW AHSN) that aims to support the increased use of Operational Research for development and decision making within the health service.

Each year a number of health service employees (Associates) are given training, a mentor and day release, one day a week, to tackle a...

A support programme to help parents of disabled children stay healthy in mind and body will begin its first trial in the coming months, and is looking for participants.

Healthy Parent Carers is a programme which aims to help parents cope with the strain of being carers by encouraging them to take a bit of time to focus on their own wellbeing.

The study, run by the Peninsula Childhood Disability Research Unit (PenCRU) at the University of Exeter, will investigate the effectiveness and feasibility of implementing the scheme in Devon, Cornwall and Somerset. It is funded by the National Institute for Health...