NIHR Centre for Surgical Reconstruction and Microbiology
The NIHR Centre for Surgical Reconstruction and Microbiology, a partnership between the NIHR, the Ministry of Defence, University Hospitals Birmingham and the University of Birmingham, opened in January 2011.
The initiative brings both military and civilian trauma surgeons and scientists together to share advanced clinical practice in the battlefield and innovation in medical research to benefit all trauma patients in the NHS at an early stage of injury.
The Centre is based at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham, where injured service personnel are currently treated after evacuation from the frontline in Afghanistan.
The centre forms a central point in England for trauma research where knowledge can be translated into real improvements in care for all NHS patients. It is the first and only research centre of its kind in the UK to focus on both military and civilian care and treatment.
Research themes
Research will focus initially on the most urgent challenges in trauma that with the aim to discover new treatments, carry out scientifically robust and unbiased testing of product concepts and evaluate novel approaches in clinical investigations, which translate findings into measured patient benefit.
|
Research Theme |
Example Innovation Challenges |
|
Acute response to traumatic injury |
New techniques involving virtual reality to “re-train” the brain following injury/resuscitation |
|
Microbiology and wound care |
Biological agents to modify wounding response |
|
Tissue regeneration |
Tissue repair using stem cells in relation to dental/facial reconstruction |
Funding
The NIHR is investing £5m (over five years) and Ministry of Defence £10m (over 10 years). The University Hospital Birmingham and Birmingham University will invest £5 million (over five years) bringing the total funding up to £20 million. Read the DH Press release.
Centre for Surgical Reconstruction and Microbiology