Case study: “It's been a great opportunity to help shape the face of research” – how an NHS Director is helping to bridge the research gap

Vicky Braide, Medicine Deputy Divisional Operations Director at Norfolk and Norwich University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (NNUH), has helped to drive health and care research as a Public Contributor on the Executive Board for the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Clinical Research Network (CRN) East of England since 2021.

After training at the University of Lagos in Nigeria, Vicky became a qualified Physiotherapist in 1999 and worked in the military, private sector and district general hospitals in Lagos before moving to the UK and starting employment at NNUH in 2006.

Throughout her time at NNUH Vicky has held a variety of roles, including Senior Physiotherapist in a rotational post, Clinical Lead Specialist and Integrated Discharge Team Service Lead. In 2021, Vicky became the Digital Health Clinical Operations Lead, working on the electronic patient record procurement for NNUH, Queen Elizabeth Hospital King’s Lynn and James Paget University Hospitals.

Vicky has always had a huge interest in equality, diversity and inclusion and is the co-chair of the group network NNUH Together. This forum seeks to represent and support the diverse network of black, Asian and minority ethnic staff within the NNUH.

It was through this network that Vicky learned about CRN East of England and saw a “great opportunity to be involved” in applying for the role of Public Contributor. Vicky said:

“I am very passionate about equal opportunities and making sure that we reach out to underserved communities and ensuring that the research that we do reflects our community, and that people aren’t overlooked or missed out.

“Research in the black and ethnic minority groups is not as good as it should be, and I want to help to bridge that gap and to address those disparities.”

Vicky has also helped to drive the NNUH’s reverse mentoring programme, which the CRN East of England hopes to participate in. This programme pairs staff from diverse backgrounds with members of the executive team and directors, to help them learn from each other’s experiences and to better understand the changes needed to make the workplace more inclusive.

At a recent core team meeting, Vicky delivered a talk with Prof Jeremy Turner, Clinical Director at the CRN East of England. They discussed their experience of the reverse mentoring programme and how it can inform the equality, diversity, and inclusion values within the organisation; an experience that Jeremy describes as “one of the most impactful and positive experiences” of his entire career.

As a member of the CRN East of England Executive Board, Vicky has been able to contribute her point of view on policies and research undertaken in the region and on any plans that are in the pipeline.

“As a Public Contributor, it's been a great opportunity to be involved and to help to shape the face of research. Research is still so important because it helps to shape the evidence for treating patients and helping to progress medical care.

“The passion that I see at the NIHR CRN East of England is so encouraging, and so is seeing the hard work that is being done in the background.”

To find out more about how you can get involved in research visit www.bepartofresearch.uk.