Laura Weldon Creative director
@studioLWD studiolwd
Consultant cardiologist Dr Gavin Galasko, clinical director PRC, Blackpool
A PRESCRIPTION FOR LEVELLING UP
Ground-breaking medical research is being harnessed to tackle the major health challenges faced by one of the most deprived communities in the UK.
A conference in Blackpool heard how research and development projects being carried out with major pharmaceutical companies are already making a difference in the town’s health levelling-up mission.
The depth of the challenge was spelled out at the event, hosted by a pioneering NIHR Patient Recruitment Centre (PRC) based in Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
Blackpool has one of the lowest male and female life expectancies in England, with figures showing more than a third of people will die before the age of 75. Cardiovascular disease and cancer rates are high, as is substance misuse among young people.
A report by Lancashire Business View earlier this year also revealed the economic cost of ill health in Blackpool. In the town’s Bloomfield ward 23.7 per cent of people are out of work due to sickness, compared to 6.7 per cent nationally.
‘Left behind’ neighbourhoods like Bloomfield are costing an estimated £29.8bn a year to the national economy in lost productivity, according to research.
The gathering of local and national experts, hosted by the trust, heard how commercial medical research is playing its part in meeting the Fylde coast’s health challenges – and the vital role it will play going forward.
More than 870 people have already benefitted from ground-breaking medical treatments trialled at the PRC, based at Blackpool Victoria Hospital, since its launch 18 months ago.
Dr Gavin Galasko, clinical director of the PRC and consultant cardiologist, said: “How do we improve things? How do we get better? We do that through research.
“Research makes a difference. In hospitals that do a lot of research patients live longer, survive better, they do better.”
The PRC’s achievements include administering the world’s first Novavax Covid-19 vaccine, after clinical trials began in autumn 2020. Novavax is now a World Health Organisation approved vaccine and it is aiming to deliver two billion doses worldwide in 2022 and beyond.
The patient recruitment centre, one of just five in the country, has also allowed patients access to cutting edge treatment and therapies not yet widely available through the NHS.
Since its launch, Blackpool PRC’s achievements also include becoming the first UK site to open three studies offering early access to new treatments in breast cancer.
How do we
improve things? How do we get better? We do that through research
It also recruited the first UK patient to a bone marrow cancer study, which is being carried out in the resort.
Dr Galasko said: “This year alone we have had six studies that have either been a first in the UK, first in Europe or potentially the first in the world.”
The NIHR Patient Recruitment Centre: Blackpool is one of just five national PRCs, which launched across England in 2020.
The purpose-designed national centres were launched across England in 2020. Established in the NHS they have been set up to work collaboratively and innovatively to make delivering commercial research quicker and easer.
Dr Angela Parker, PRC Blackpool manager and manager for research, development and innovation at the trust said: “By attracting more commercial research to the UK, we will also increase opportunities for our patients to access cutting edge treatment and therapies that are not yet widely available through the NHS.”
IS YOUR BRAND HOLDING YOU BACK?
Emotion is at the heart of all good brands. But if you are more emotionally connected to your brand than your customers, it could be holding back your growth.
Business owners especially can feel a lot of love for brands that have been with them since the start of their journey. But businesses develop over time, and if your customers are not feeling the connection you are, there will be a number of tell-tale signs.
Here’s how to spot if your brand isn’t connecting:
You’re attracting the wrong customers
If your customers aren’t who you had in mind, it could mean that there is a misalignment between your brand identity and what you offer.
Your customers are unclear about what you do
A weak brand can lead to confusion for your audiences. A strong brand encapsulates what you do and who you do it for.
You’re finding it harder to attract the top talent
You want the best people to be super keen to work with you and help your company flourish. The dynamism of your brand will be reflected in the kind of people who want to work for you.
You have noticed a fall in sales
If your brand doesn’t feel fresh to your customers, your competitors might seem more enticing.
If any of the above sound familiar, perhaps it’s time to cut the emotional ties and take a fresh look at your brand?
For a no obligation audit of your current brand, email
hello@studiolwd.co.uk,
call 01253 892031 or visit
www.studiolwd.co.uk
LANCASHIREBUSINESSVIEW.CO.UK
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