The first awardee is Dr Annegret Dahlmann-Noor whose award starts on 1st May 2024 and funds 50% of her time to develop a programme of research to tackle myopia in children. The core project will be to develop a Core Outcome Set for trials of myopia management interventions in children, and to run a feasibility study to prepare a RCT comparing different interventions. The participants of the research – called COSMYC – (Core Outcome Set for Myopia trials in Children) will be children with myopia and their parents/caregivers who are using new treatments (special glasses, special contact lenses or low-concentration atropine eyedrops), and eye care professionals who prescribe and manage some of these treatments. Together, they will work out which outcomes matter most to children, families and eyecare professionals.
I am delighted to receive the award, which will allow us to work on a topic that is very important for many children and parents, and to develop new talent within the BRC at the same time.
Dr Annegret Dahlmann-Noor
In addition to this project, the award supports Annegret’s time working on ongoing research projects about myopia in children, including co-supervising budding clinical and non-clinical researchers who are undertaking MSc and PhD projects.
The other awardee is Dr. Vijay Tailor-Hamblin who will be using the funding to identify a set of research topics in concomitant strabismus – where one eye is mispositioned in comparison to the other eye, from the patient’s perspective that will inform future research questions for improving care and knowledge.
Vijay will undertake patient and public engagement and involvement (PPIE) techniques to speak to families and patients from across the country to identify themes. These will then be discussed in focus groups with clinicians to develop specific research questions that will address the themes raised by patients and families. The NIHR SCPRA award will fund Vijay to undertake this work for 1 day a week for the next 3 years.