Posted on 26th May
Sherwood Forest Hospitals Trust (SFH) – which operates Newark Hospital – is recruiting Covid-19 patients to participate in a ground-breaking new study of the coronavirus disease.
The study is a partnership between the GenOMICC Study Consortium (led by the University of Edinburgh) and Genomics England. The study, announced by the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Matt Hancock, will help the medical profession and scientists to better understand the varied effects on people of the virus and support the search for treatments.
Researchers from the University of Edinburgh’s GenOMICC project will work together with Genomics England and over 170 NHS hospitals trusts to sequence the genomes of 20,000 people who are severely ill with Covid-19.
The data collected by SFH and others will be compared to that from a further 15,000 Covid-19 patients who experienced only mild symptoms. This data will be collected from participants in the 100,000 Genomes Project and UK Biobank.
This ground-breaking research may help explain why some patients with Covid-19 experience a mild infection, others require intensive care and why for some it is sadly fatal.
Liz Gemmill, SFH research and innovation director, said: “We’re really excited and proud to be participating and supporting the Genomicc study. This study plays a vital role in gaining new insights into how this virus affects us and our vision is to help find a cure.
“In line with Matt Hancock’s announcement we would like to give our patients the best chance to take part in this study. Please contact us on 01623 622515 ext 3990 to find out how you can support this and your Trust.”
