PenCLAHRC people look to the future

Staff, clinicians, postgraduate students and service users involved in the NIHR CLAHRC for the South West Peninsula have been considering how to build upon the successes of the pilot phase and start planning for the future. This exercise began in earnest at the annual Learning Together Event held in March 2012.

Senior staff led open discussion sessions on the following areas: Child Health, Mental Health, Behaviour Change, Primary Care, Care of the Elderly/Dementia and the Environment and Human Health. Participants were asked to think about what had worked well and what could have been better, as well as identifying potential new activities or areas for development.

The key themes which emerged across the groups were as follows:
• Maintain the principle of deriving questions from those close to the real issues facing the NHS (clinicians, managers and service users).
• Continue the emphasis on academic themes where we have a track record and expertise.
• Support emerging groups and specialisms with capacity building and appropriate infrastructure.
• Develop better links with other organisations involved in health and social care
(e.g. local authorities, third sector, commercial providers).
• Ensure engagement is a two-way process, being sensitive to the needs of the stakeholders we wish to connect with.
• Develop narratives and case studies around our success stories across all themes.

Detailed notes from each discussion group are available on request to those who took part and those directly involved in the work of the collaboration. The outputs are informing discussions within the Executive Group and with our partners about a strategy to sustain the activities of the CLAHRC.