NIHR's response to COVID-19

The world faces an unprecedented challenge in our efforts to tackle the spread of COVID-19 and it is vital we harness our research capabilities to the fullest extent to limit the outbreak and protect life.

Professor Chris Whitty, Chief Medical Officer and NIHR Co-Lead

On behalf of the Department of Health and Social Care, the NIHR is playing a critical role in terms of prioritising, funding and delivering urgent public health research into COVID-19.

Research into vaccines, treatments, diagnostic tests and severe mental health issues - and real-time collection of samples and data from people undergoing treatment - is generating important evidence about COVID-19. This has been made possible by close collaboration with the devolved administrations, Public Health England, UK Research and Innovation, the Health Research Authority, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, NHS England and Improvement, and many other organisations.

Urgent public health research into COVID-19 continues to be our number one priority. However, as the number of COVID-19 cases is falling and as the NHS is beginning to restore routine clinical services, we believe the time is right to also ‘restart’ research activities which have been paused due to COVID-19 and 'open' for new studies. We have developed a framework to support this restart process following wide stakeholder consultation, and refreshed our information for patients and the public on our Be Part of Research website.