Led by Health Data Research UK (HDR UK), in partnership with the Office for National Statisitics, The National Core Studies programme will stimulate new, comprehensive and co-operative research efforts into COVID-19. The programme comprises six study arms; infection and surveillance, trials, transmission and environment, immunity, longitudinal health and data and connectivity.
SAIL Databank and the Secure eResearch Platform (SeRP) – the technological infrastructure that powers SAIL – will be key components in the delivery of the Data and Connectivity arm. Working alongside other Trusted Research Environments (TREs), this study connects the other five arms across the UK and accelerates the approach to answering key research questions by enabling streamlined data access and analysis.
The National Core Studies will examine the levels of infection in the general population and in specific settings such as schools or nursing homes, the impact of different environments on the spread of COVID-19, and now the immune system offers protection following infection. The aim is to build on the wealth of expertise that exist in health research across the UK.
This is a very exciting large-scale proposal that brings together world-class research efforts to study all aspects of the impacts of coronavirus. The work undertaken at SAIL and SeRP has been feeding into Welsh Government’s Tactical Advisory Group as part of their Covid-response strategy. We look forward to collaborating with HDR UK, the NHS, the Office for National Statistics and others, to support this UK Government initiative.
Professor David Ford, Director of SAIL and SeRP
Find out more about the National Core Studies, including how to get involved, on HDR UK’s website here https://www.hdruk.ac.uk/news/134850/
