Eastern NHS Trusts’ vital collaborative role in UK’s first home-grown COVID vaccine

As the nation sees the continued roll out of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine to people across the regions, we thank a very special Eastern collaboration that played a vital part in making it possible.

As the nation sees the continued roll out of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine to people across the regions, we thank a very special Eastern collaboration that played a vital part in making it possible.

Cambridgeshire is home to several NHS trusts, including Cambridge University Hospitals (CUH), Royal Papworth Hospital (RPH) and Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust (CPFT). When the pandemic hit UK shores, research teams at these organisations joined their colleagues across the country in rising to the challenge that lay ahead - to find ways to tackle the coronavirus.

Finding a vaccine for COVID-19 quickly became a prime focus for many scientists the world over, with one early candidate originating in Oxford, funded and supported by the NIHR. As with any treatment or vaccine, the only way to find the solid evidence base to ensure it is effective is to find volunteers to help test it. In England, our unique NIHR network of staff embedded in the NHS were able to hit the ground running when the call went out to begin recruiting volunteers for the Oxford vaccine study.

In Cambridge, conversations began between the three key NHS trusts to determine the most efficient and effective way their teams could deliver this study. The logistics were challenging so the decision was made to pool the teams' resources and work collaboratively in order to deliver in all aspects of the study. Not only was this the first time this had happened for the teams involved, it also resulted in CPFT being the only mental health trust to deliver the trial, facilitated by its team at the Windsor Research Unit.

Once the teams were ready to go, staff from all three trusts quickly began signing up, becoming some of the first to take part in the trial, with all dosing taking place at CUH. Regular teleconference meetings were held between the sites to co-ordinate delivery as efficiently as possible, with follow ups divided between all three sites.

Dr Mark Toshner, Principal Investigator for the Oxford vaccine trial at CUH, said: "It was a privilege to be part of a team that came together from all corners of the biomedical campus. This was a shining example of what collaboration can achieve and we thank all the research staff and volunteers in the trials who helped with this work. It is astonishing to think it is already saving lives."

Abraham Koveliljacob, an Integrated Care Worker at CPFT, was so grateful to have the opportunity to be one of the NHS staff members invited to take part in the trial. He said:

"I am proud to have been part of the resolution of a world pandemic. It makes me grateful and also gives me the feeling that doing a little thing can make a big impact on the world. If you want to be a part of any research you should go for it as you only live once!"

This partnership has now set a standard for cross-working to deliver these kinds of trials. The Cambridgeshire collaborative has now taken on a further vaccine study in recruiting to the Janssen vaccine trial and is ready to open further research to make sure the most effective vaccines can be found for as many people as possible.

To find out about getting involved in COVID-19 vaccine studies happening in the UK visit bepartofresearch.uk.