ORCHID Annual Report 2023 - Flipbook - Page 1
About us
The Centre for Outcomes and Experience Research in Children9s Health, Illness and
Disability (known as ORCHID) is a research centre within GOSH. It was first established
in 2000, led by Professor Linda Franck, and was then situated within a new theme within
ICH General and Adolescent Health. The research centre remained within ICH until
around 2011, when the unit become fully supported by GOSH. The core leadership of
ORCHID has remained stable since its move into the Trust.
ORCHID is one of a discrete number of academic units hosted within a NHS hospital,
and its uniqueness lies in its primary focus on children and young people. Leadership of
ORCHID is multi-professional in nature, and our focus is on the conduct of high-quality
outcomes and experience-based research in the field of child health, specialising in
inclusive research with hard-to-reach groups and collaborating on multi-disciplinary
studies locally, nationally, and internationally. In addition, we have a significant role in
influencing and helping to embed a strong research culture into the fabric of GOSH, and
support NAHPs (Nurses, Allied Health Professionals) who are actively seeking to
develop a clinical academic career, as well as supporting everyone to find ways to
answer clinical questions.
Through these combined goals ORCHID contributes to innovation and excellence in
child health care, both generating evidence to influence policy and practice and fostering
the development of NAHP research leaders of the future. ORCHID is led by the GOSH
Director of NAHP Research and comprises a team of senior researchers from NAHP
disciplines who are each leading programmes of research. Within ORCHID we also
have a Clinical Academic Faculty which comprises an integrated group of NAHPs who
are undertaking pre-doctoral, doctoral, and post-doctoral level research training.
Through our varied roles and multiple partnerships, we support research across GOSH
and contribute to the research hospital agenda. See below, these are just some of our
partnerships.
ORCHID by Numbers
