Director of Research & Improvement, Solent NHS Trust; England

Sarah has a background in public health, having worked on health promotion programmes primarily in Eastern Africa and Central America. She joined the NHS in England nearly 15 years ago, and now leads the improvement team for large community and mental health provider. She established and now leads the Solent Academy of Research & Improvement. The first of its kind in the NHS, it provides an integrated approach to research, clinical effectiveness, quality improvement and patient and public partnership working. The point of this is to provide an accessible source of a support for staff, communities and service users to engage in a broad range of improvement activities. Sarah is a strong advocate for person centred research, accessibility and increasing equity in participation. She is particularly passionate about ensuring that the patient/ family voice is at the heart, and in breaking down barriers to enhance inclusion.