In November last year, the Sudlow Review provided a landmark review of the barriers and complexities holding back research using the UK’s health data. Authored by Professor Cathie Sudlow and supported by HDR UK, it included a set of clear-cut recommendations to transform the situation.
Today, just five months later, the government has announced it will establish a national health data service – the central recommendation of the review.
Read: Why do we need a National Health Data Service?
The announcement of a Health Data Research Service (HDRS), backed by up to £600 million from the Government and Wellcome Trust is a defining moment in harnessing the power of health data.
By addressing the longstanding barriers of fragmentation and inefficiency, it could pave the way for faster, more impactful discoveries. It’s the engine that can power the NHS 10-year plan and life sciences sector plan, building on principles and essential criteria we’ve already shaped with ABPI.
Launching the HDRS is one thing, making it work safely and securely for public benefit is another. This is a complex challenge and no one entity can tackle it alone. Success will hinge on uniting researchers, NHS leaders, policymakers, academia and industry.
Most of all, it cannot succeed without the public and health professionals having trust in the data service. They must be involved in its design and implementation from the start.
Professor Andrew Morris, Director of Health Data Research UK, said:
“As a doctor and researcher, the announcement of a Health Data Research Service is a day many of us have been waiting for. It is a big investment in the future health of the nation.
“We have a rich abundance of health data in this country thanks to the NHS. The team at HDR UK demonstrated for the first time last year that UK wide studies harnessing data on 68M people is possible for public benefit. But the system remains slow and fragmented which means that safe and secure research using the data is delayed or prevented for months and years. This is stalling advances that could benefit millions of patients and is wasting taxpayers’ money and medical charity donations invested in research.”
“A Health Data Research Service was the main recommendation of the Sudlow Review, which offered a set of solutions to tackle these problems and for which Health Data Research UK provided the secretariat. So I am delighted that within a few months of publication, we are seeing action.”
Professor Cathie Sudlow, Strategic Advisor and Former Chief Scientist, Health Data Research UK, and author of the Sudlow Review: Uniting the UK’s Health Data: A Huge Opportunity for Society, said:
“Today’s announcement of a Health Data Research Service, a central recommendation of my recently published review of the UK’s health data landscape, is a major step forward for UK health research. It has the potential to be a game-changer by accelerating secure, trustworthy, data-driven research to improve patient care and public health for the tens of millions of people in this country and beyond.
“The service should enable faster, more reliable access for approved researchers to the data needed to tackle society’s most pressing health research needs – to develop and test new approaches for preventing, diagnosing and treating health conditions such as cancer, dementia, heart disease, depression, arthritis and infectious outbreaks. It should support better studies, quicker answers for the health and care system and, ultimately, faster, better outcomes for patients and their families.
“Turning this investment from the UK Government and Wellcome into something that delivers will demand focus, cooperation across multiple organisations, attention to detail and – crucially – ongoing, meaningful involvement of patients, public and health and care professionals. However, with the UK’s rich health data assets and strong life sciences and data science research capabilities, I am confident that we can make this work for everyone’s benefit.”
Learn more about the Sudlow Review’s key findings and recommendations
