Building research capital to facilitate research
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COMMENTARY
Open Access
Building research capital to facilitate research Gill Green1* and Melanie Rein2
Abstract The National Institute for Health Research, Research Design Service (NIHR RDS) was set up to increase the number and proportion of high quality applications for funding for applied and patient focused health and social care research. Access to specialist expertise and collaboration between researchers and health practitioners at the proposal development stage is crucial for high quality applied health research. In this essay we develop the concept of ‘research capital’ to describe the wide range of resources and expertise required to develop fundable research projects. It highlights the key role the RDS plays supporting researchers to broker relationships to access the requisite ‘research capital’.
Introduction National health research systems which harness the capabilities of key stakeholders and promote joined-up working between them, are likely to be the most effective [1]. The National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) was set up by the Department of Health in England to realise the unique research opportunities and potential within the NHS and to provide a framework to support the NHS as a national research facility. The central mission of the NIHR is “to create a health research system in which the NHS supports outstanding individuals, working in world class facilities, conducting leading edge research focused on the needs of patients and the public” [2]. To achieve this aim the NIHR established a range of research programmes and a research infrastructure of networks, centres, units and research systems to foster a supportive and robust environment within which research in the NHS can flourish (Figure 1). Collaboration and partnership between researchers and decision-makers, and/or managers is seen as key for successful research and translation of research into practice [4-7]. In this essay we focus upon partnerships and support required to develop a robust research proposal. A number of clinicians and university researchers in England have developed strong applied health research programmes and access to extensive research networks. However, novice researchers who are based in an environment that lacks a rich research culture, may struggle * Correspondence: [email protected] 1 School of Health & Human Sciences, University of Essex, Wivenhoe Park, Colchester CO4 3SQ, UK Full list of author information is available at the end of the article
to develop fundable research proposals. Part of the NIHR aim is to support health professionals who may have excellent ideas for research but lack the methodological expertise or access to the requisite partners to design and carry out high quality research. The NIHR Research Design Service (RDS) was set up specifically to address this and to offer support to less-experienced NHS researchers and those working in organisations without a research track record applying to the NIHR research programmes. There are 10 regional RDSs covering the whole of England
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