BMJ  2006;333:1239 (16 December), doi:10.1136/bmj.39059.559213.DB

News

Cooksey report recommends central coordinating body for research

¹ London

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

The long awaited report by Sir David Cooksey on UK healthcare research has proposed a new model of structured coordination between the NHS, the Medical Research Council (MRC), and the healthcare industry to ensure more research is translated into tangible benefits for patients.

But the report, commissioned by the chancellor, Gordon Brown, has decided against merging the two main funding bodies, the MRC and the NHS's National Institute for Health Research (NIHR).

Instead the report proposes a central coordinating body, the Office for Strategic Coordination of Health Research, which will oversee all health research funding, determine strategy, and monitor progress against targets.

In addition, a joint MRC-NIHR Translational Medicine Funding Board will direct money towards projects that promise "health and economic benefits."

But the MRC and NIHR will continue to operate independently. Indeed, the report wants to see a clearer demarcation of their roles. And it says that the institute . . . [Full text of this article]

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