Researchers from across the Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (OUH) and the University of Oxford visited the Joint Research Office (JRO) on Friday (18 May) as it threw open its doors for International Clinical Trials Day.
The JRO brings together research support services for the OUH and University, covering services such as research governance, contracts, grants, finance, business development and the NIHR Oxford Biomedical Research Centre.
OUH currently hosts 956 trials, of which 172 are sponsored by the University.
The event, held at the newly renovated Boundary Brook House, on the Old Road Campus, was an opportunity for researchers from OUH and the University’s Medical Sciences Division, as well as other local research organisations such as Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust and Oxford Brookes University, to meet the teams that help make their studies a reality.
“It was great to see members of the local r
esearch community come and chat with our specialist teams to get a fuller picture of all the work that goes on ‘behind the scenes’ at the JRO and hear feedback about our work from researchers,” said Dr Chris Bray, OUH Head of Research and Development Operations and co-lead of the JRO.
“It was also a good opportunity to show our support for the NIHR’s ‘I Am Research’ campaign, which aims to raise awareness of the benefits of health research and the beneficial impact it has on patients’ lives. In this year of the 70th anniversary of the creation of the NHS, we’re keen to help celebrate the world-leading innovation taking in place in the health service, and specifically here in Oxford.
“Here at the JRO we are committed to continuing to develop the support our teams provide to the vital collaboration between OUH and the University of Oxford, ” he said.