Working with the NHS

Capacity building is essential to the future of the NHS – and making the best use of health data is critical to population health management and  improving care and services.

One element of this is ensuring that the right training and learning opportunities are available so people working in, or with, the health services in all four nations of the UK are at the forefront of the latest developments.

HDR UK is involved with a series of initiatives to help shape the workforce needed and to maximise the benefits that health data can bring for patients and service users.

AnalystX

HDR UK is a strategic partner of AnalystX, an NHS group which aims to lead the drive towards evidence-based decision making by sharing learning across health and social care beyond typical organisational and geographic boundaries.

It does this by connecting and empowering the data and analytics community, providing a safe space for professionals to collaborate in a radical way across the health system.

AnalystX has established its own academy to provide a structure for learning by job role, specialism, domain and interests.

The Association of Professional Healthcare Analysts

HDR UK Programme Director for Capacity Building Sarah Cadman and Head of Training Rosie Wakeham, are members of the advisory board of AphA .

AphA works to raise the profile of healthcare analysts and provide a professional support network.

It is playing a valuable role in driving up the quality and applicability of robust analytics as an aid to evidence based decision making in a modern health and care system.

AphA is also acting to raise awareness among health and care organisations of the value of analysts in helping to strengthen the NHS strategy and vision by providing knowledge and expertise to support informed decision-making.

Developing Data and Analysis as a Profession Board

The Capacity Building Team is also playing an active part on the NHS England Developing Data and Analysis as a Profession Board.

The board brings together key stakeholders from across the health sector to develop analytics as a profession using a consistent, shared and transparent approach, with priorities and actions agreed and developed between key stakeholders.

South West Analytics and Infrastructure in Healthcare

We are also partnering SWAIH (South West Analytics and Infrastructure in Healthcare).

Members of the Capacity Building Team sit on the SWAIH steering group, helping guide its development as a network that hosts meetings, workshops and online talks for people working with healthcare data for research in the South West. 

SWAIH is hosted by the University of Exeter, and aims to provide a consistent and trusted network to share information and news, promote and highlight relevant events and research from the region as well as coordinate funding and resources to host targeted events and online talks.

NHS Digital Leadership Academy

HDR UK also had a partnership with the NHS Digital Leadership Programme. This saw the Capacity Building Team, in collaboration with colleagues across The Institute, deliver bespoke training workshops on public and patient engagement and involvement, data ethics and governance, and equality, diversity and inclusion.

This initiative is helping tackle underrepresentation of Black people within the health data science sector and kickstart their careers.