UK to host world-beating burns research centre: the largest single funding award of 5 million...

THE HEALING FOUNDATION, A UK charity, this month announced 5 million [pounds sterling] funding for a Chair of Burn Injury study within the UK. The charity is closely associated with the UK Fire and Rescue Service; both Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Fire Services for England and Wales Sir

This will be the largest single amount ever awarded to a British project of this type and the post will be the the only one of its kind in the UK. It is an ambitious project that will emulate the work of the prestigious Shriners Units for Burned Children in the USA. The research centre will be established at a leading university, in partnership with a hospital that has a major plastic surgery burns centre. Within the centre, it is envisaged that a major work stream will include research into the prevention of fire injuries. Institutions interested in hosting this post are currently being invited to submit a formal application to the Healing Foundation, with the deadline for receipt of proposals being the end of this month. A decision will be reached regarding the successful applicant in October 2006.

Burn Injury Centre

The Burn Injury Centre is likely to develop into the most important single influence in burns in the UK, setting international standards of excellence for the enhancement of burn care, particularly in children. Around 14,000 patients are admitted to hospital with serious burns every year.

Around ten times as many with lesser burns are treated in hospital or as outpatients. However, the largest single group suffering burns is children under five, around two thirds of whom will need treatment for serious scarring. All burns leave scars; they shorten and tighten, thereby restricting function and, in the long term, adversely affect growth in children. Currently, a good clinical outcome is not assured and so a focus for excellence and research in the area of burn care, including prevention, is essential

Hope for a better future

"At nearly two years old, my daughter Terri was involved in a serious house fire. She suffered burns to more than 85 per cent of her body," commented her father, Paul Calvesbert. "One of the hardest things to come to terms with was the way people looked at us. They seemed to see only her scars. People with burns can become outcasts just because they look different and it can be difficult to convince others that, whatever a burns victim looks like, they are still normal inside. This new post will hopefully provide new solutions for burns victims, lessening scarring and ultimately improving people's quality of life, so that fewer people will have to go through the trauma that my daughter has."

Peter Dziewulski, Chairman of the British Burn Association, commented: "This announcement of funding by the Healing Foundation marks a watershed in burn injury research in the UK. This will provide a national focus for research into our cellular understanding of burns, new surgical treatments, the psychology of living with burn scars and issues such as prevention, nursing care and other burn care therapies. It has the potential to place the chosen university, and the UK, on the international map of research and deliver practical benefit to the many thousands of people affected by serious burns every year."

The Chair of Burn Injury Study will provide a national centre for scientific, clinical and preventive related research, fulfilling a pivotal role in facilitating the introduction of new technology and ensuring its successful clinical application in burn care. It will provide leadership in research and training across all areas of burn treatment as well as fostering collaboration and coordination across different burn injury studies. While 5 million [pounds sterling] is being provided by the Healing Foundation, a further 5 million [pounds sterling] is being sought from match funding sources.

Jagtar Singh said: "I have now been a trustee with the Healing foundation for over five years--this is a significant step forward for the charity and will have an impact on many people that we as a Fire Service come into contact with through our operational roles. The foundation will also be carrying out research in the future into preventative works as research projects get identified and new funding is committed. The research team are currently asking our Vice Presidents Geoff Ord and Sir Graham Meldrum to draw up some research questions for consideration.

The Healing Foundation is a new organisation that provides funds for research into the prevention and treatment of disfigurement and visible loss of functions.

The Healing Foundation

The Healing Foundation is a new national fundraising charity established in 1999. Their objects are for the relief of sickness and for the preservation and protection of public health by:

* Carrying out and funding research into the improvements of treatments for the benefit of people who suffer from physical, psychological, social, or emotional disadvantage as a result of physical disfigurement or functional impairment present at birth or acquired through accident, disease, or illness and into the prevention of accidents which may cause such conditions;

* Disseminating the results of this research and helping to train health workers in appropriate treatments throughout the world;

* Informing people about the availability of treatments both new and in development

For more information please visit: www.thehealingfoundation.org; or contact: Brendan Eley, The Healing Foundation on Tel: 020 7869 6920; Fax: 020 7869 6929; E-mail: brendane@thehealingfoundation.org