Dean's Message
18 Feb 2019
Message from Graham Lord
The International Day of Women and Girls in Science was established by UNESCO to recognise the role women and girls play in science and technology.
It was therefore great to see our Faculty and the wider University celebrating this annual event. The day serves to remind us that diversity and equality in teaching and research brings fresh perspectives and that we must rise to the challenge of attracting more women to enter the fields of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics).
To celebrate International Women’s Day, on Wednesday, 6 March the Faculty will be welcoming the scientist and diversity champion, Jess Wade, who is one of the journal Nature's 10 people who mattered most in 2018. If you’d like to come and hear her speak, register here.
I spoke at a Translation Manchester event last week – my first ‘official’ event as Dean. What an inspirational and committed audience of colleagues from the Faculty and our partner organisations.
Translational research is the process by which basic scientific research is ‘translated’ into patient-focused research and improved patient and population healthcare and wellbeing. In a nutshell, it’s about innovation in the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of ill-health and it drives improved health and wealth through many different pathways.
Translation Manchester is part of a Wellcome Trust initiative to help overcome the obstacles to conducting translational research in Greater Manchester by bringing together a complex network of support, facilities and expertise to make the pathway to translation quicker and easier.
We already have major research infrastructure in the BRC (Biomedical Research Centre) and Clinical Research Facility (CRF) and a multitude of support systems for producing high-quality research. We need to embed a real collaborative team spirit and take a coordinated approach to successfully deliver research for patient benefit.
The event encapsulated the collaborative spirit in Manchester and the willingness to do things better and quicker but also highlighted for me the complexity across the city. There were 20 different organisations represented and we were considering the 17 or 18 different component parts of the translational pathway. I can well imagine that basic scientists and even clinicians will be thinking ‘Oh my goodness, how can I ever navigate that?’ even though there is a roadmap. How do we simplify this when there isn’t a single front door? They are all good component parts and there needs to be some coordinated collaborative oversight and the meeting was looking at how we can put that together. There were some fantastic talks from Faculty colleagues, including Nigel Hooper, our Vice-Dean for Research and Innovation, Anne Barton, head of our Division of Musculoskeletal and Dermatological Sciences and deputy director of the BRC. Cath O’Neill, Professor of Translational Dermatology and Jacky Smith, Professor of Respiratory Medicine gave talks highlighting their own experiences of translation that were both inspiring and illuminating.
The translational assets in Manchester are very impressive and all of them are critical at different stages of the translational pathway. Optimal alignment of our science, teaching and learning is key here so that the Faculty ‘push’ is matched to the ‘pull’ from the wider healthcare system across Greater Manchester.
Optimal alignment is a theme I will be coming back to over the next few months as we develop the new 10-year strategy for the Faculty. Let’s start the discussion at the Town Hall meeting on Thursday, 28 February. We’re looking to make the session more interactive by using technology to help us collect ideas, create a safe space to discuss what works and what doesn’t, and to ask questions.
I’ve met the extended Faculty Leadership Forum at a networking lunch. That was a great opportunity for me to chat to this important group of leaders and influencers informally before our regular monthly sessions kick in.
Meanwhile, I’m trying to get used to the proliferation of acronyms at the meetings I’m attending. Recently, colleagues were talking in a committee meeting about 'BAU' and I was thinking 'What’s BAU? Is that a new building going up?' I now know it stands for 'business as usual' but it could have been an acronym for a new project! Just goes to show. We only know what we know. And we learn something new every day!
Thank you to those of you who have emailed me with questions and challenges. I’m keen to hear your perspectives and I will respond as soon as I can. Have a good week!
All the best,
Graham
Professor Graham Lord
Vice-President and Dean