News Government adviser launches new M-RIC headquarters
A new Liverpool headquarters for the Mental Health Research for Innovation Centre (M-RIC) was formally opened by Professor Lucy Chappell, Chief Scientific Adviser for the Department of Health and Social Care and Chief Executive of the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR).
M-RIC is co-located with the University of Liverpool’s new Civic Health Innovation Labs (CHIL) which was launched by Professor Chappell with the unveiling of a plaque to mark the event.
Professor Lucy Chappell said:
“It is a privilege to be able to open such an important research centre in the heart of Liverpool. Collaboration within the research sector is essential if we want to tackle some of the largest health and care problems facing the world today, and centres like this make that a reality.
“I particularly welcome the clear engagement and involvement of the community in this initiative. I am excited to follow what the organisation produces and see how it improves the lives of patients and the public.”
The new M-RIC base is at Liverpool Science Park overlooking the Metropolitan Cathedral and it provides a space for researchers, data scientists, health professionals, academics, industry partners and service users to work together to address global and local mental health challenges.
M-RIC is part of the Government’s UK Mental Health Mission, funded by NIHR and the Office for Life Sciences and led by a partnership of Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust one of the country’s largest providers of mental and physical healthcare, and the University of Liverpool.
Professor Joe Rafferty CBE, Chief Executive of Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust said:
“This is an exciting step for the Mental Health Research and Innovation Centre (M-RIC). The aim of the Office for Life Science and NIHR Mental Health Mission is to bring NHS Trusts closer to research, and as Chief Executive of Mersey Care, I am delighted to be able to include research as a core part of the model of care which treats patients more effectively and ultimately transforms lives.
“M-RIC underpins Liverpool City Region’s commitment to improving mental health and wellbeing outcomes for our communities. We have made significant progress in our goal to attract, innovators, and forward-thinking clinicians and academics to revolutionise the future of mental health care, research and innovation. This enables us as an NHS provider to transform the model of mental health care which treats patients more effectively.”
A long-term partnership with Holmusk is another key part of M-RIC. The collaboration between Holmusk, Mersey Care and the University of Liverpool will create a sustainable framework for generating continuous and high-quality real-world evidence in mental health. This is essential in providing high quality curated data for clinical trials and studies and for informing clinical and health policy as it brings the true patient experiences into decision-making.
M-RIC’s operational HQ will be home to a host of interdisciplinary staff including data scientists, clinicians, programme and project management, communications, HR, and finance working side by side with public advisers. Projects already under way through M-RIC include:
- Data and digital infrastructure: The creation of a Trusted Research Environment working with the Civic Data Cooperative, PA Consulting and Microsoft.
- Digital Self or Health Avatar Project: This aims to improve how data is collected and linked to electronic care records, to benefit treatment for patients.
- Innovative Therapies for Mood Disorders: A novel mood disorder service pathway – one of the first in the UK to be integrated between GPs and mental health services – is now in the set-up phase.
- Improving mental health for children and young people using digital technology: Our researchers are working with adolescents in testing MindAR, a therapeutic game-based approach to managing wellbeing.
- Neuroimmune therapeutics for psychosis: A system for discovering how to reuse established drugs that work on the immune system to help people with psychosis is being co-created with service users.
- System-Wide Mental Health Discovery and Implementation: Projects include a major new research programme in wider health determinants with Liverpool City Council; a new telehealth programme; and a new research network focused on Adverse Childhood Experiences.
Professor Buchan, W.H. Duncan Chair in Public Health Systems, Co-Director of M-RIC and Associate Pro Vice Chancellor for Innovation, University of Liverpool (pictured below) said:
“We have created an environment to fuse different kinds of expertise in creating and evaluating data-intensive solutions to some of society’s most challenging health problems.
“Building on our world-first Civic Data Cooperative, Liverpool City Region’s residents are deeply involved in how CHIL uses their data. Liverpool is proud to break new ground with civic approaches to data and AI innovation, demonstrating a spirit of togetherness that delivers positive change, as seen in our COVID-19 responses in a world challenged by antimicrobial resistance, climate, conflicts, mental health problems, emerging infections, and the increasing frailty of ageing populations we need to pool our innovation resources – we’re all in this together.”
Highlights from the Civic Health Innovation Labs (CHIL) and M-RIC headquarters launch event