Research Delivery Workforce Update
October 2022
October 2022
Welcome to our Update page, where we share regional & national updates related to training & research delivery workforce matters.
The North West Research Workforce Team work across Greater Manchester and North West Coast LCRNs, ensuring that there is a cohesive workforce, learning & development offer to our Partner Organisations and the wider workforce.
Note that our L&D offering is research specific and is designed to supplement the non-research L&D offering of your employing organisation, not replace it.
Please email us at learning.lcrnsnorthwest@nihr.ac.uk if you have any queries or feedback.
*Please ensure you scroll to the bottom so you don't miss anything*
Your North West Research Workforce Team (NW WF Team) Left to right: Seonaid, Mary, Martin, Laura and Grace.
Please note that NIHR Good Clinical Practice training is mostly provided as part of the NIHR Learn suite of online learning only. There are some classroom events in planning.
are listed within the NIHR Learn "Locally Delivered Learning" tab (centre of home page) as one NW-wide identity - CRNs North West (GM & NWC).
As a reminder, here are weblinks to current our suggested learning plans for Research Delivery Teams and Principal Investigators.
If you're planning to support a research novice into your research delivery team, please consider utilising the suggested learning pathway. This is the model used by NW WF Team to create an offer that matches the likely contents of current competency frameworks and is then scheduled to ensure your learner is best placed to consolidate their peer/workplace learning within face to face events.
We plan for incremental learning, using 'spaced repetition', bearing in mind competency frameworks & induction phase timelines and we also use a workforce learning model known as the 70/20/10 rule, with 70% being on the job learning, 20% being peer support and 10% formal learning events. This is described here & other aspects of this work is described across the pages in the Our Approach to....... webpages.
Within NIHR Learn - Clinical Research in Practice Settings - could be useful in helping new starters settle in if it's used prior to being asked to complete GCP, or for students on placements. There are also several related sections below.
To ensure your team are exposed to all that is offered - please ensure you (and any learners you have responsibility for) are familiar with NIHR Learn. We have now created a new page within this site to provide useful information about NIHR Learn to help you and your colleagues understand how to best use it as a resource.
We offer a Research Delivery Team (RDTE) specific learning pathway to our Partners - scheduled by the line manager, in alignment with how it is offered.
Most of the pathway can be accessed directly via NIHR Learn. This is not something the learner should be navigating in isolation - it is expected that the line manager will drive the learning plan and development of research novices, in a timely manner with staff performance & retention in mind.
RDTE is designed to underline the first 3-4 months of development & plan for the next few months ahead - and is a course that necessitates line manager nomination. RDTE Course outline.
"Informed Consent" is an additional course to the consent component of RDTE, specifically for those who will seek consent - so should be undertaken after RDTE. It forms part of the Consent Training Pathway. Informed Consent Course outline.
We need to be able to schedule these training courses according to demand. Please send us a request via this RDTE and Informed Consent Line Manager Nomination Form to let us know you have a new starter in post who needs to access RDTE and possibly also Informed Consent.
We will then send them a welcome message and will make contact when a place for Essentials becomes available.
We are planning at least 2 cohorts of RDTE between now and end of December and Informed Consent sessions to follow these. Please see above for process to apply for places.
Offered as part of a PI pathway, we have the following sessions coming up. Please make sure you read the course descriptions before booking to ensure you have the relevant experience required for the sessions.
Dates for our PI training programmes can be found within our North West CRNs Locally Delivered Learning pages on NIHR Learn, include a booking request form.
NIHR Learn Insights
NIHR Learn Insights is a CPD resource with new instalments every two months and the most recent edition looks at the importance of a Reflective Practice (RP) as part of our development.
This instalment focuses on celebrating diversity in health research and highlights specific contributions individuals have made (past and present). We also explore how increasing our own knowledge and awareness of scientists across a range of identities and experiences can help to facilitate more meaningful engagement with different communities.
Did you know that NIHR Learn Insights is mobile friendly?
Grab a cuppa and take a moment.
This Infogram resource is the first in a series being created to offer monthly updates to senior stakeholders on progress within the NIHR CRN-led Programme for Growth and Development of Clinical Research Practitioners (CRPs) UK-wide.
In this report you will find CRP Register and CRP Directory sign up data, including current numbers joining the CRP Register, the volume of in-progress CRP Register applications and the community of interest listed on the CRP Directory.
Please also find the latest newsletter which has been sent out to CRPs on the Directory and Register.
This includes
a series of webinars through November on aspects of the AHSC Accredited CRP.
the launch of two new CRP sites - one for NIHR focused on CRP Community & Engagement and one for AHSC, focused on the registration process.
You can visit the North West CRP webpage. Within this page, there is the opportunity to sign up to a mailing list. Over the coming weeks, we'll be looking for expressions of interest for developing a NW CRP Community of Practice. We'll use this mailing list in the first instance to make contact with those who are potentially interested.
The North West LCRNs are in the process of planning Cohort 5 of this successful experienced researcher development programme.
The Research Scholars Programme (RSP) provided by LCRNs NWC & GM is an interactive developmental programme aimed at equipping tomorrow's clinical research leaders with the skills, knowledge and experience needed to be the Principal and Chief Investigators of the future.
NWC have created a video of their experience to date.
In addition, a successful candidate for Cohort 4 has created a video to describe their aspirations on entering the programme.
Please review application information and FAQs carefully, and please consider attending the Q&A drop-in session being provided by the Programme Leads.
NIHR Nursing & Midwifery are proud to sponsor the Student Nurse or Midwife of the Year: Clinical research category at the 2023 Student Nursing Times Awards.
The award aims to recognise a student nurse or midwife who has shown themselves to be a true advocate for clinical research. Find out more and make your nomination.
Contact: Lucy Ainsworth, Programme Officer Of Nursing & Midwifery (lucy.ainsworth@nihr.ac.uk).
NIHR Applied Research Collaboration (ARC) Greater Manchester has opened applications for its 2022/23 internship programme.
The programme provides an excellent opportunity for registered health and care professionals to get an introduction to research.
Successful applicants will get to spend 30 days, over a four-to-nine-month period, with the ARC's research teams.
The deadline for applicants is 11 November. Please share details with any contacts who you think may value this opportunity.
If you are interested in workforce planning; additional workforce; volunteer deployment; skill mix; you may want to view the National & Regional Resources.
FutureLearn Courses: note that you can join these at any time although if you want to do it with a 'cohort' of learners these have regular start dates.
With all FutureLearn MOOCs, remember that your do not have to purchase a certificate as you can 'screenshot' your completion page.
What is Health Research? (NIHR/University of Leeds)
For NHS staff, patients and public and is a good first step and overview. Explore the world of health research and the role volunteers play in transforming treatments and improving health care. You can sign up here.
This course aims to give researchers and trial teams an overview of how digital tools can support the recruitment and retention of trial participants, whilst also considering their possible limitations. The course is open to anyone with an interest in clinical research.
The Advanced Therapy Treatment Centre (ATTC) network have developed a new e-learning programme in collaboration with e-learning for Healthcare. Please share with your networks/communities as appropriate.
Learn how to deal with change by watching this 30 minute NIHR webinar, aimed at all staff associated with NIHR, including infrastructure.
Help build an inclusive culture in your workplace by learning how you can be a better ally. Watch this 30 minute NIHR webinar to get some idea's on how to do this.
We have a North-West Workforce Learning and Development Twitter account where we share some of the great work going on across our region.
Follow us, tag us when you have something you'd like us to shout about and you never know what opportunities and contacts you might come across along the way!