London (South) CLRN Annual Research Meeting 2012

On March 27, 2012 we hosted our second Annual Research Meeting. This year’s meeting had a focus on working with industry and was held at our host site, Guy’s & St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, on the 29th Floor of the Guy’s Tower, London Bridge.

The event was well attended with almost 200 delegates, made up of research professional from both the NHS and Industry, from across South London and beyond.

We were pleased to welcome a number of speakers from Industry and the NHS. Our keynote speaker was Miles Scott, Chief Executive of St George’s Healthcare NHS Trust, who shared his experiences on how to promote research within NHS organisations and getting the most from the CLRN and Industry.

Dr David Goldsmith, Clinical Director for London (South) CLRN, gave an update on the network’s recruitment performance, focusing on commercial portfolio studies. He demonstrated the good work that the network is doing but that this needs to continue to ensure we are making a real contribution to the national NHS clinical research industry. Professor Martin Gibson, Associate Director for Industry NIHR Comprehensive Clinical Research Network, gave the national picture of the NHS and its participation and recruitment into clinical trials, enhancing Dr Goldsmith’s messages, that on a national level, the need to attract commercial companies to the UK is a key objective for NIHR, and plays a pivotal role in the turnaround of the UK economy.

Two guest speakers from leading pharmaceutical companies, Adrienne Clarke from GlaxoSmithKline and Dr Helen Townsend, from Novartis, described their experiences of working with the NHS on commercial trials and how the NHS can look to improve systems and procedures, encouraging commercial companies to come back to the UK to carry out clinical trials. Dr Helen Townsend closed the presentations by describing how through the adoption of the “Hub & Spoke” Model we can involve all NHS organisations in clinical research.

Presentations were followed by a ‘Question & Answers’ session to our pane, which was made up of the speakers from the day, as well as Jackie Powell, Director of the Clinical Trials Office for King’s Health Partners and our two other Clinical Directors, Professor Stephen Devereux and Professor Gillian Rowlands.

The event was well received with plenty of questions relating to all areas of clinical trials and the CLRN.

The day also offered the opportunity for Trusts and other clinical research networks to showcase and promote their own work and role in delivering clinical research. The exhibition area hosted 14 stands which included; charities, NHS Trust and university departments, joint partnerships - such as King’s Health Partners, local topic networks, NIHR services and industry representatives.

We have received some amazing feedback from delegates, speakers and exhibitors, and we would like to thank everyone who contributed to the day.

We would especially like to thank the following organisations, departments and groups who helped make our event a success by holding exhibition stands on the day:

• Biomedical Research Centre - Guy’s and St. Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust and King’s College London
• Clinical Trials Unit, King’s College London
• Diabetes Research Group - King’s College London
• GlaxoSmithKline
• King’s Health Partners Clinical Trials Office
• Leukaemia & Lymphoma Research
• Medicines for Children Research Network (MCRN) London and the South East
• Mental Health Research Network
• NIHR WHELD Programme Team - King’s College London
• Primary Care Research Network for Greater London (PCRN GL)
• Research Design Service London
• South East London Cancer Research Network (SELCRN)
• South East Stroke Research Network (SESRN)

Download our Delegate Pack below for exhibitor biographies and contact details.

Presentations from the day are available for download in the section that follows below.

Further images are also available to view on the London (South) CLRN Portal Site Image Gallery.

Presentations on the day were as follows and can be downloaded by selecting the link:

Recognise our contribution: A London (South) CLRN Industry Update (PDF 3MB)
Dr David Goldsmith, Clinical Director, London (South) CLRN

Promoting Research Within A Trust -Getting The Most From The CLRN and Industry (PDF 400KB)
Miles Scott, Chief Executive Officer,St George’s Healthcare NHS Trust

Industry Perspective on the Networks Role in Delivering Excellent Research (305KB)
Adrienne Clarke, Oncology Clinical Team Manager, GlaxoSmithKline UK Ltd

Working with industry: A Network Perspective (PDF 1MB)
Professor Martin Gibson, Associate Director for Industry NIHR Comprehensive Clinical Research Network

Hub & Spoke– Revisited (PDF 313KB)
Helen Townsend, Head of Clinical Operations UK/ROI, Novartis Pharmaceuticals UK Limited

The presentations were followed by a Q&A session to the panel.

Further downloads from the day

Full biographies and further details from the day are available within the programme which you can download from the Delegate Pack as a PDF at the the link below.

Delegate Pack - Annual Research Meeting 27 March 2012 (PDF 2MB)

If you attended this year's meeting and have some feedback please complete our online evaluation form, found at: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/annualresmtg2012