CLINICAL RESEARCH

Anne Hayes: I became a nurse later in life; I had brought up a family and worked in retail prior to becoming a nurse. I qualified in 2009 after completing a nursing degree at the University of Birmingham. My nursing career began in an acute stroke/ neurology ward with research nurses based in the team and my interest in research was heightened as I observed it in a clinical setting. After five years as a nurse in an acute setting, I obtained a job as a band five generic research nurse. I am now a band six research nurse working with the stroke and ICU teams in Sandwell Hospital.

Lavinia Henry: I started working as a midwife at the Trust at Dudley Road Hospital in 1993. Having gained 25 years' experience in all areas of midwifery – antenatal, intrapartum, postnatal, and neonatal transitional care – I started my current post of research midwife in 2018. Research has always been a passion of mine and as a research link midwife I can offer expert knowledge of our client group, clinical environment and pathways. This practical experience helps in planning recruitment strategies and identifying and overcoming potential barriers to research inclusion.

Memory Nelson: I became interested in research following my high-risk pregnancy, when my consultant offered me the opportunity to take a part in a study that his colleague was running at a different hospital. I had no idea what it meant; all I knew was it was an opportunity to allow my pregnancy to progress.

When I returned to work from maternity, I started talking to the research nurses that came to my ward. I was guided and supported by them and I was soon accepted at a local trust as trainee research nurse. Since 2012 I have since worked in a range of specialities and am currently in rheumatology. Working in research was my way of giving back and has been by far the most rewarding thing I have done in my career.

Sibet Joseph: I have been a registered nurse since 1999. During my career, I mostly worked in cardiology before joining the CRF at Sandwell in 2019. I worked in different areas within the speciality including coronary care unit, cath-lab, cardio-thoracic theatre and in the community heart failure team. I initially joined cardiology research at Ascot Centre and at UHB. My main role as a research nurse is to lead and deliver the allocated different cardiology/lipid trials at the site.

Zoe Pilsworth: I did my undergraduate degree in biology. I enjoyed my degree and I realised that whilst I wanted to do research in healthcare, I wanted to see patients too and help them today as well as tomorrow. So, I applied to do my nurse training through a graduate entry programme. After qualifying, I worked on a busy renal ward and whilst there, I found opportunities to be involved with research on the ward. I gained funding for my own project on mental health training for staff through a National Institue for Health and Care Research (NIHR) project looking to fund research into practice ideas. From there, I then found a job as a clinical research nurse in an organisation which specialised in phase 1 trials, the first stage in human drug trials. Since my husband and I both work in healthcare and did shift work, I had to find a job that would allow me to fit around childcare. Research back within the NHS setting was perfect for this. I was able to use my research skills and knowledge and balance family commitments. I started in ophthalmology research, did some dermatology research, then moved into cancer research, and I was able to apply for funding on another NIHR course aimed at helping early career researchers to learn more and to start their masters degrees. At the moment I am a research nurse but one day I hope to complete my masters and apply for a PhD so that I can run research of my own and be a nurse researcher. If you would like to find out more about research in out Trust and potential career pathways