Harnessing the potential of the Tees Valley: Widening research engagement and impact.
This one-day conference is aimed at showcasing the opportunities for all staff to become involved in research and how we can work with partners to increase the impact of our research.
We are delighted to announce that our conference will include a keynote address from Dr Louise Wood, former Director of Science, Research & Evidence at the Department of Health and Social Care and currently Chair of the Association of Medical Charities and Board member of the Northern Health Science Alliance
There will be a host of expert speakers sharing information and key updates:
- Group strategic ambitions for research
- Latest achievements and updates
- Discussion of how we increase research engagement and impact with and from
- Commercial partners
- Chief Investigators
- Academic Research Units and academic partners
- Staff
- Patients
- Specialties within UHT
- Morning panel discussion around future developments and challenges
- Afternoon panel discussion around embedding a culture of research
RCP CPD points applied for.
Speaker Biographies
Dr Louise Wood CBE, Chair Association of Medical Research Charities (AMRC). Former Director, Science Research & Evidence at DHSC and Former Deputy Chief Executive of the NIHR
She has worked at national and international levels for over 30 years in organisations dedicated to excellent science, enabling a healthier society and driving economic prosperity. As a senior civil servant, she held roles in strategic leadership, operational delivery and policy-making including as Director of Science, Research and Evidence at the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and Deputy CEO of the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). Her early career was in drug safety at the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, serving on the Agency’s Executive Board for four years as founding Director of the General Practice Research Database.
Louise has served as a Council Member for the Medical Research Council and member of Advisory Boards for the British Heart Foundation, LifeArc and Wellcome. She was elected an honorary fellow of the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Medicine in 2011, awarded a CBE for services to health research in the 2019 and elected an honorary fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences in 2023.
Professor Chris Day CBE
Professor Chris Day has been Vice-Chancellor and President of Newcastle University since January 2017. A former Consultant Hepatologist, he has an international reputation in medical research and was awarded a CBE for Services to Health Research and Treatment in the 2023 New Year Honours.
He has held key leadership roles, including serving on the Council of the Medical Research Council, the Executive of the Medical Schools Council, and chairing the Clinical Medicine Sub-Panel for the 2014 Research Excellence Framework (REF). For REF 2021, he chaired the Institutional Environment Pilot Panel, assessing research environments at the institutional level.
Professor Day is currently Chair of the Russell Group, President of the Association of Physicians of Great Britain and Ireland, a member of the Council of the All-Party Parliamentary University Group and serves on the Advisory Board of the UPP Foundation. He is also a Deputy Lieutenant of Tyne and Wear, reflecting his contributions to higher education and research. (Feb 2025)
Megan Darragh, Astra Zeneca
Dr Martin Johnson
Dr Martin Johnson has a broad medical background, with specific training and expertise in clinical trials and research in multiple therapeutic areas. He has a particular interest in pain management and was RCGP representative for Chronic Pain for almost 20 years plus Vice President of the British Pain Society.
He has been involved, in various roles (sub investigator, PI, CI, Sponsor Medical Monitor and Medical Director/Senior Medical Director/CMO) in over 250 studies and 35+ years, working closely with academic groups and the industry in these fields.
Dr Johnson has a background of 29 years of General Practice combined with extensive Primary Care Research and Healthcare reorganisation.
During the height of the pandemic, he was part of the team that developed the world’s first COVID Challenge model – one of the highlights of his research career. He has worked in a variety of clinical research organisations and at present works as UK Medical Director for FutureMeds Ltd. He still likes to keep his hand in and be a PI/CI some studies!
Research continues to motivate & fascinate him. In his life he has seen many diseases successfully treated with new medications, some of which he has helped develop.
Helen Cole, Cole, Executive Lead for Health Technologies and Evaluation
Helen is a clinical scientist, with over two decades of experience in health technology evaluation, addressing regulatory, procurement, commissioning, and National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) perspectives.
She has co-authored several longitudinal research studies on interventional procedures using routinely collected and linked registry data. Helen represents the NHSA on various executive committees and steering boards for Health Data Research (HDR) UK North, two EPSRC-funded Digital Health Hubs, an NIHR-funded HealthTech Research Centre, and regularly engages with the three NHS Secure Data Environments (SDEs) across the North of England.
Laura Reid – MBA Senior Leadership in Health Care, UK Healthcare Partnerships Manager, TriNetX
Laura supports NHS organisations in optimising TriNetX’s tools and solutions to enhance their research portfolios through patient recruitment and study feasibility. TriNetX, the world’s largest global health research network also offers academic researchers access to extensive real-world data and advanced analytics to accelerate the discovery of new therapies and enhance clinical trial design. With over a decade of experience in the NIHR, NHS, and private healthcare sectors, Laura has been instrumental in advancing commercial research delivery, fostering strategic partnerships and overseeing Industry collaborations.
Dr Chris Howell, Senior Business Development Manager – Life Sciences, Durham University
Dr Chris Howell is a strategic connector and business development leader with deep expertise in university-industry engagement, particularly within the life sciences sector. His previous roles in the sector have seen him support pharmaceutical manufacturing, medical diagnostics development, and advanced forward medical logistics. As Senior Business Development Manager at Durham University, he plays a pivotal role in fostering partnerships with multinational corporations, aligning academic excellence with commercial innovation.
Chris is committed to translating cutting-edge research into impactful real-world applications. He leads initiatives that support regional growth, including collaborations with the Faculty of Science and alignment with the UK Government’s IS-8 Paper and the NECA Local Growth Plan, which highlight the North East’s strengths in bioscience and health technologies.
With a strong focus on strategic engagement, Chris supports the development of new programmes, facilitates access to university facilities and expertise, and brokers high-value collaborations. His work is instrumental in positioning Durham University as a key player in the UK’s life sciences innovation ecosystem.
Dr Omar Al-Janabi AUA ARMA, Head of Business Development and Partnerships
A prolific networker with over 28 years of experience in business development, with 21 of those years focused on university-industry engagement, funding, and access to finance. He is currently the Head of Business Development and Partnerships at Durham University, where he leads a team dedicated to translating research into real-world applications and facilitating university services and funding for clients.
He is passionate about delivering a positive impact on society, the environment, economy, and policy. Over the past two decades, he has assisted in securing a significant grants and private investments. An entrepreneur in his own right, he has founded, scaled, and successfully exited a number of ventures, and he is always seeking a new challenge.
He is a trained coach and mentor who provides advice and guidance to new and established businesses. His doctoral research focused on university-industry engagement, during which he developed an “Evolved Quadruple Helix for Impact, Innovation and Income Generation”. He is a STEM ambassador for schools, an advocate for women in tech and digital, and has a vested interest in mental health advocacy, peer support, and lived experience.
Prof Jeff Breckon
Professor Jeff Breckon is Associate Dean for Research in the School of Health and Life Sciences at Teesside University. He is a BPS and HCPC Chartered Psychologist.
Jeff has published and presented internationally on the design and delivery of health behaviour change across a range of clinical populations emphasising the role of treatment fidelity for evidence-based counselling interventions. Jeff has generated over £8.5m as a PI and CI in research mainly focussed on lifestyle behaviour change interventions and has presented internationally with over 80 invited keynotes and symposiums to a range of health professionals including physiotherapy, primary care, diabetes, stroke, mental health, social work, workplace wellness, and pharmacy.
Prof John Young
John S. Young is Professor of Translational Healthcare and Director of the Centre for Biodiscovery at Teesside University. He has built his career at the intersection of academia, industry, and healthcare, in order to improve patient lives. He is a firm believer in ‘challenge-led’ innovation: the principle that research should be driven by real-world needs. Today, he will discuss this vital approach and introduce a new Doctoral Training Programme created to build capacity and address your challenges. He will also extend an invitation for you to help guide this work, ensuring that future research is guided by the challenges faced by patients, clinicians, and scientists alike.
Professor Quentin Anstee BSc (Hons), MB BS, PhD, MRCP(UK), FRCP
Pro-Vice-Chancellor – Faculty of Medical Sciences
Ruth & Lionel Jacobson Chair of Personalised Medicine and Honorary Consultant Hepatologist
https://www.ncl.ac.uk/medical-sciences/people/profile/quentinanstee.html
Prof Quentin M. Anstee is the Pro-Vice-Chancellor of the Faculty of Medical Sciences, Newcastle University, UK. A practicing clinician, he is also an Honorary Consultant Hepatologist in the Liver Transplant Unit at Newcastle’s Freeman Hospital, where he established one of the largest Metabolic-dysfunction Associated Steatotic Liver Disease (MASLD), formerly called Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD), clinical services in the U.K. He trained in medicine at University College London where he was awarded a First Class Honours degree and won First Prize in Medicine in the final MB BS examination.
Prof Anstee’s translational research has made major contributions across the pathophysiology, natural history, diagnosis and treatment of MASLD. His work has provided key insights into temporal changes in steatohepatitis during disease evolution, identified genetic and epigenetic modifiers of liver disease progression and hepatocellular carcinoma risk, and has substantially advanced the field of biomarker development in liver disease. He has coordinated several major international research consortia studying pathogenesis and developing/validating accurate biomarkers to assist the diagnosis, risk-stratification and monitoring of patients with MASLD including: ‘EPoS’ Elucidating Pathways of Steatohepatitis (EU H2020 funded €6 million, 2015-2019) and ‘LITMUS’ Liver Investigation: Testing Marker Utility in Steatohepatitis (EU IMI2 funded €47.3 million, 2017-2024). He leads the European MASLD Registry and is the chief investigator of multiple ongoing clinical trials assessing new medical therapies for MASLD. He is an NIHR Senior Investigator and has been named as one of the world’s most influential researchers in the Web of Science list of Highly Cited Researchers, amongst the top 1% of scientists by citation metrics. He is an Associate Editor of the Journal of Hepatology.
Professor Dimitris Lagos is Director of Research (York) at Hull York Medical School (HYMS) at the University of York. He is Professor of Immunology, and his research focuses on the interface of RNA medicine and immunotherapy in infectious diseases and cancer. As the Medical School Director of Research, he oversees the research activity of the Medical School in York and contributes to the delivery of the University’s health research agenda. Previously, he was the founding Head of the HYMS Experimental Medicine and Biomedicine group in York.
Professor Gerard Danjoux is a Consultant Anaesthetist at University Hospital Tees (2002 to date).
He has been academic department lead since 2008 and holds Honorary Chairs at Hull York Medical School (HYMS) and Teesside University. In 2022 he co-founded (and now leads) the North Yorkshire Academic Alliance of Perioperative Medicine in collaboration with colleagues from York Hospitals and HYMS. He is Vice-President of the International Prehabilitation and Perioperative Exercise Testing Society.
Marie Branch is Clinical Research Delivery Manager for TVRA.
Marie completed a BSc Adult Nursing with first class honours, and MSc Service Improvement with a distinction, at Teesside University. Recently she completed an Apprenticeship in Operations or Department Manager (Level 5) with a distinction. Marie began her nursing career within the critical care department in 2007, moving into clinical research delivery in 2011. Having worked for more than 10 years within research delivery she has developed an extensive knowledge base. She is enthusiastic and passionate about research delivery, and believes that all patients should be given the opportunity to take part in research.
Nicky Cunningham
Nicky Cunningham is a Registered Nurse with more than 27 years of experience in clinical research design, development and delivery. She has previously held various clinical and academic research roles including Senior Lecturer in Research Methodology and is an NIHR Senior Research Leader (70@70 Alumni).
Currently Nicky leads Nursing, Midwifery and Allied Health Professionals (NMAHP) research at University Hospitals Tees and serves as the Hospital Setting Lead for research within the North East and North Cumbria Research Delivery Network (RRDN).
Her research interests center on strengthening research capacity and capability across non-medical professions, with a particular focus on advancing research education and building confidence among healthcare professionals to actively engage in research.
Sharon Dorgan 1. RRDN Health & Care Director (NMAHP) 2. NIHR Associate Director of Nursing & Midwifery, North East and North Cumbria Regional Research Delivery Network
Sharon Dorgan joined the Research Network back in 2008 and has worked in a variety of regional research governance, strategic and workforce related roles. She is passionate about providing opportunities for Nurses, Midwives and Allied Health Professionals (NMAHPs) to continually grow their research knowledge and skills. Sharon’s current position is the Health & Care Director (NMAHPs) for the Regional Research Delivery Network (RRDN) in North East and North Cumbria (NENC). Sharon also holds the role of NIHR Associate Director of Nursing and Midwifery and led on the development and implementation of the NIHR Principal Investigator Pipeline Programme (PIPP) for NMAHPs.
Caroline Fernandes-James is a PhD Research Fellow and a Respiratory Physiotherapist, who is passionate about advancing respiratory health through innovative research by collaborating with academia and supporting Nursing, Midwifery and Allied Professionals to become future research leaders. As Principal Investigator she has successfully led the Kings College London IMPROVE trial in COPD pulmonary rehabilitation which was a first pilot intervention site in England and the Trust was commended for recruiting the first 20 patients nationally. Caroline’s PhD research involves a systematic review deconstructing behaviour change interventions in pulmonary rehabilitation, qualitative research exploring the meaningful activities that COPD patient’s value and co-designing pulmonary rehabilitation referral.
Claire Tiffany
Dr Joanne Lally is a Principal Research Associate and Strategic Lead for Patient and Public Involvement and EDI at the NIHR Research Support Service, hosted by Newcastle University and partners. Her research background is in healthcare quality improvement using both clinical audit and comparative quality indicators. The main focus of her work has been patients experience of healthcare interventions in a variety of settings. Alongside this qualitative work is her developing interest in Patient and Public involvement in research, how we can encourage full and active participation and how we can evaluate its impact.
Rebecca Maier Rebecca is head of the ACU. She was previously part of the leadership team at Newcastle University CTU, and prior to that was co-director of Durham University CTU.
Rebecca has a track record in the design and conduct of multi-centre, peer-reviewed, nationally funded, randomised controlled trials including RESTORE, AFFECT, PROACT and UK Mini Mitral. Rebecca is a member of numerous groups in the National Cardiac Surgery Clinical Trials Initiative and chairs their CTU Group.
She is passionate about well-designed and robust research to answer questions that are important to patient and clinical communities, enabling evidence-based advances in medical practice.
Dr Santosh Puthuraya
Dr David Chadwick
David Chadwick is a consultant and honorary senior lecturer in Infectious Diseases at James Cook University Hospital. He trained in Infectious Diseases in Cambridge and Singapore, including an MRC Clinical Fellowship in HIV Gene Therapy. After moving to Teesside in 2003 he developed both clinical and research interests in HIV and viral hepatitis, whist also establishing a research team in Infectious Diseases. The team have expanded and overseen a variety of studies including anti-infective and vaccine trials. He has also developed and (with colleague) obtained funding for studies mainly related to HIV and viral hepatitis, both in the UK and in West Africa.
Dr Kevin Conroy
Dr Conroy is a respiratory and general medicine consultant specialising in pleural disease and point of care imaging.
Dr. Vrinda Nair, MBBS, MD, FRCPCH (UK), PGCert Clinical Research is a Consultant Neonatologist and the current Clinical Director for Neonatology at James Cook University Hospital, South Tees NHS Trust. She has been Chief Investigator (CI) for more than three clinical research projects and is presently the CI for the High flow with Automatic Apnoeic Oxygenation for Preterm Intubations – Randomised Controlled Trial (HAAPI). Dr. Nair has authored over 25 peer-reviewed publications, including randomized controlled trials and quality improvement studies, and is a co-author of neonatal textbooks such as Manual of Neonatal Respiratory Care.
She is also a Research Supervisor for MD fellows from Newcastle University and currently supervises an MD research fellow, in addition to holding a Associate Fellowship with Newcastle University.
Dr Anu Kansal, Consultant in Pain Medicine MBBS, MD Anaesthesia, FRCA, FFPMRCA, ESRA-DPM
Dr Anu Kansal is a Consultant in Pain Medicine at South Tees NHS Trust, specialising in neuromodulation, image-guided procedures, and intrathecal drug delivery. With over 18 years of NHS experience, she has developed research interests in neuropathic pain, CRPS, and cancer-related pain, focusing on translating clinical innovation into improved outcomes. She combines academic enquiry with patient-centred practice, ensuring research informs care. Actively involved in clinical studies, teaching, and mentorship, she contributes to national and international pain education. Dr Kansal is committed to advancing evidence-based strategies and multidisciplinary approaches in pain medicine, improving outcomes for patients with complex pain conditions.
Anna Townsend Rose, FutureMeds
With a foundation in nursing and a deep commitment to patient-centred care, Anna began her enthusiasm for research by establishing a pioneering home care team for patients with COPD – an experience that sparked a passion for research. This drive led to a landmark rationalized controlled trial comparing home versus hospital care for CPOD patients, published in the BMJ.
In 2016, Anna took on her first post as a research nurse with Synexus, quickly rising to site manager and earning the prestigious Global Site Award for excellence. Her leadership continued with FutureMeds, where she played a key role in its early development – setting up the North Tees site in collaboration with North Tees NHS Tr5ust, followed by the launch of a second North East site in Newcastle.
Beyond the world of clinical trials and site management, Anna finds joy in fitness and family life, especially time spent with two beloved grandchildren. A believer in innovation, integrity, and the power of compassionate care, she continued to share the future of clinical research with both heart and vision.
Programme
Who should attend
Any member of staff who is curious about how research can contribute to improved patient care or how they can get involved, research active staff, research delivery and development staff. This one-day conference is an opportunity to meet research colleagues from the two trusts, learn about recent developments and achievements and all of the exciting opportunities available to grow our research partnerships for improved patient care through research.
Organised by:
Education events and conferences team, STRIVE Academic Centre
Email: [email protected]