New guides provide routes to clinical academic careers

Two guides to support healthcare professionals to develop clinical academic careers are launched today.

The guides have been developed by Health Education England (HEE) and the National Institute of Health Research (NIHR) to provide information on the various awards available through the two organisations, how to apply for awards and how the awards work in practice should applicants be successful. The guides also include case studies from award holders who talk about their experiences and the impact holding an NIHR or HEE award has had on their career.

There are two guides available:

• The NIHR Integrated Academic Training programme for doctors and dentists
• The HEE/NIHR Integrated Clinical Academic (ICA) programme for non-medical healthcare professionals, including nurses, midwives, allied health professionals and healthcare scientists.

Professor Nicki Latham, Executive Director of Performance and Development at HEE said:

I am delighted that we are launching the two guides together, signalling our commitment to supporting clinical academic careers for all healthcare professionals, and the benefits research can bring to our patients. These guides will make the pathways easier to navigate by bringing together a wealth of information and will hopefully help answer those questions that potential researchers may be afraid to ask.

Professor Dave Jones, Dean for NIHR Trainees said:

These guides represent a comprehensive resource for anyone looking to find out more information about clinical academic training opportunities with NIHR and HEE. The guides should be essential reading not only for applicants to the programmes and those already in receipt of funding, but also for those responsible for managing and coordinating clinical academic training in their organisation.