The fourth Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust Research Festival entitled ‘Engage, Enthuse, Empower’ was held in June. This annual event hosted hundreds healthcare professionals who met to share and celebrate research achievements. The event, organised by Dr Joanne Cooper recognised and applauded the diversity of research, innovation and education undertaken by Nurses, Midwives and Allied Health professionals at NUH.
In previous years AHPs have been persistently under represented at the event and the research forum has been dominated by nursing colleagues. This year the Physiotherapy research contribution was evident throughout the day and consolidated with the prestigious award for ‘Best poster presentation’.
Laura Marshall and Alison Bicker were two of seven highly commended researchers selected to present their work in a workshop session whose aim was to raise the profile of research within Therapies at NUH. Laura was delighted to win the award for ‘Best poster presentation’ for her master’s dissertation work entitled ‘A feasibility study to explore patient experience following sub-acromial decompression surgery’. Laura commented;
“It is really important for Physiotherapists to get involved with research. Treatment and patient expectations are constantly changing and clinicians need to be up to date with the current research agenda. It is challenging as a frontline therapist to transcend the clinical-academic interface. We all a have a responsibility to answer clinically relevant research questions to strive for evidence-based practice in the clinical setting. I was lucky enough to undertake the NIHR funded Masters in Research Methods at Nottingham University which has provided me with an amazing opportunity to complete an exciting piece of research. I hope our success as a department today will inspire others in undertaking Physiotherapy research”