News

Among Nottingham BRC’s commitments are to facilitate patient-centred research and improve access to healthcare for the population.

One of the researchers within the Hearing Theme striving towards this goal is Research Fellow Dr Sian Calvert, who was among five investigators who were awarded a poster prize at the last Nottingham BRC conference.

Sian has been reflecting on her recent varied research projects, which have included making an ongoing contribution to promoting inclusivity in hearing and dementia research.

Sharing the top 10 research priorities 

Dr Calvert has been part of the BRC team working on the Hearing Theme’s James Lind Alliance Priority Setting Partnership (PSP). 

Last year, over 500 members of the public contributed to PSP Co-existing Dementia and Hearing Conditions. The PSP process was led by researchers from the Nottingham BRC in partnership with people with lived experience of dementia and hearing conditions, clinicians, and representatives from RNID, Alzheimer's Research UK, and Alzheimer’s Society.

This produced a national agenda to shape future research about co-existing dementia and hearing conditions, and plans are being formed to share the PSP top 10 priorities with the public later this year.

In connection with the two co-existing health conditions, the BRC Hearing team including Sian published a scoping review protocol regarding specialist clinical pathways in audiology services for adults living with coexisting hearing loss and dementia in December. 

A rewarding career option for students

Meanwhile, in January, Sian and her colleague Dr Emma Broome presented at the NIHR Student Engagement Event. This was a day-long event aimed at students and recent graduates interested in research, enabling them to learn more about becoming involved in health and care research.

Their talk covered their research career journeys to date and offered a perspective on why clinical research is a rewarding career.

During the same month, Sian also embarked on an NIHR Skills and Enhancement award. She explained: “This is a two-year programme during which I will engage in activities such as clinical shadowing and training in implementation science, research governance, leadership, and policy, enabling me to develop relevant skills and experience to support the next phase of my research career.”

For the rest of 2025, her plans include focusing on progressing her NIHR DSE (Development and Skills Enhancement) Award. This is a postdoctoral level funding opportunity aimed at supporting early to mid-career researchers in gaining specific skills and experience to underpin the next phase of their research career.

“I will be continuing work that led to the BRC conference poster prize and contributing to the Nottingham BRC Hearing theme by promoting inclusivity in hearing and dementia research to help ensure research outcomes are meaningful to those that the research will impact,” she said.

A key step forward will be recruiting a Biomedical Vacation Summer Scholarship student to support the development of a toolkit designed to enhance the inclusion of under-served communities in hearing and dementia research.

This work dovetails with the BRC’s commitment to patient-centred research and improving access to hearing healthcare, with the goal of driving meaningful change in health outcomes.