Supporting the NHS

HERU supports the NHS through research, professional advice and building health economics capacity.  Research focuses on key priority areas for the NHS:  incentivising individuals to adopt healthier lifestyles (Health Behaviours and Inequalities); improving NHS productivity and performance (Workforce and Organisation of Care); understanding patient preferences (Preference Elicitation) and determining the cost effectiveness of new clinical interventions (Assessment of Technologies).

HERU receives core funding from the Chief Scientist Office (CSO) of the Scottish Government Health and Social Care Directorate and the University of Aberdeen. Substantial additional funding also comes from competitive research grants, consultancy and training activities. The Core funding provided by CSO enables HERU to:

  • Establish or enhance research expertise in CSO priority areas.
  • Invest in key projects in priority areas for which direct costs cannot be recovered (CSO and Research Council grants) or which are unlikely to be funded by other mechanisms.
  • Provide seed-corn funding for projects in priority areas which lead to additional funding from outside sources in the future.
  • Develop new methodologies and develop and test the appropriateness of existing leading-edge methodology for application to the health service and health related issues.
  • Build research capacity in health economics throughout Scotland.
  • Develop and make available new research facilities and new datasets.
  • Offer expert advise and support to NHS Scotland and the SGHSC on the application of existing research knowledge and the development and management of research.
  • Contribute expert advice on health economics through committee membership and contributions to other expert groups.

Major decisions over the allocation of core-funding are taken by the Senior Management Group of the Unit. This follows, where appropriate, discussion between the Unit Director, the CSO Research Manager with responsibility for the Unit and senior management in the College of Life Sciences and Medicine. Decisions are subject to Review by the Unit Advisory Group, Programme Advisory Groups, and are audited in the five-yearly CSO Review of HERU.

HERU does not subsidise NHS research but will use core funds to co-invest with NHS Scotland where any of the above conditions are satisfied. Specific requests for collaboration in the area of “assessment of technologies” are assessed against the following criteria:

  • The project is in an area of national significance and has the potential to make a difference

Is it likely that the project will:

1) Result in output rated as internationally excellent; or
2) Offer scope for developing the methodology of economic evaluation; or
3) Provide an opportunity to build health economics capacity, either by providing training opportunities for existing staff or by allowing for new skills to be recruited; and
4) We currently have or can obtain the capacity to take on the management, supervision and investigator commitment required for the project; and
5) Fits with our areas of expertise in economic evaluation and assessment of health technologies.

Indicators that are used to judge potential for international excellence include:

  • The importance of the economic issues to be addressed (Specifically, can a clear case be made about why it is important to invest in the problem e.g. scale of problem; likely large cost and effect implications);
  • The proposed study design;
  • The collaborators' track-record of research. 

For further advice contact the Interim Director, Prof Mandy Ryan (Tel +44 (0)1224 437184) or email m.ryan@abdn.ac.uk)