Government invests £200 million in health data research

Today the government has announced funding of up to £200 million to be invested to enable research to better access NHS data through Trusted Research Environments and digital clinical trial services.

They say that this will make crucial data more securely and quickly available for research, while offering the highest levels of privacy. It will also ensure that the NHS will be able to deliver new life-saving treatments to patients faster, and will support more diverse and inclusive clinical research to tackle health inequalities and improve patient care. 

By making it quicker and easier to set up and run clinical trials, this funding will also help to ensure that the UK continues to be at the forefront of life sciences research. The new infrastructure will support efforts to improve the nation’s health and to deliver the Life Sciences Vision, including in crucial areas
such as cancer, cardiovascular medicine and mental health.

Leading the way

Reacting to the announcement, our Medical Director, Professor Sir Nilesh Samani, said:

“We welcome this news. The pandemic has demonstrated how access to routinely collected heath data for research is vital to improving the diagnosis, treatment and care of people. 

"At the BHF we’ve been leading the way in unlocking the vast potential of health data in a safe way that protects patients confidentiality through our creation of BHF Data Science Centre.  Working with other including NHS Digital, the Data Science Centre has set up a Trusted Research Environment which allows access to health data to researchers while safeguarding patient confidentiality. 

"The Centre has already furthered our understanding of the effects of Covid-19 on our heart and circulatory system, helping doctors to care for those most severely affected. It has also helped us to understand the impact of the pandemic on cardiovascular care within the NHS, allowing us to direct efforts where they are needed the most to keep people healthy and provided vital information on the safety of vaccines. 

"This new funding will enhance the ability of the NHS to take this approach across all areas of healthcare, helping them to deliver the best possible care and allowing researchers to come up with new and better treatments to improve health across the board. We look forwarding to working with the NHS and other partners realising the full potential of this initiative for patient benefit. 

find out more about the bhf data science centre