Bristol Brain Centre opens at Southmead Hospital

Press release issued: 27 November 2015

The new Bristol Brain Centre, which brings together expertise from North Bristol NHS Trust and the University of Bristol, opened at Southmead Hospital on November 25. The centre is the first of its kind in the country to bring together research teams in the areas of multiple sclerosis, dementia and movement disorders, such as Parkinson’s.

The centre is located on the top floor of Elgar House, which has been completely refurbished thanks to £1.5million of funding from Southmead Hospital Charity, the University of Bristol and the dementia charity BRACE.

Neil Scolding, Professor of Clinical Neurosciences at North Bristol NHS Trust and the University of Bristol, said: “This is a fantastic facility, in which clinical research teams from across Bristol are leading the way in finding ways to combat a number of truly debilitating neurological diseases.

“Thank you for the support from members of the public, the University and BRACE, without which we wouldn’t be here today.”

Based at the centre are:

BrAMS (Bristol & Avon MS Service)

A dedicated service for people with multiple sclerosis supported by a multi-disciplinary team which includes specialist doctors, nurses, physiotherapists and psychologists, supported by administrative assistants and secretaries who offer a wide range of clinical research for patients with MS.

MOVE-hIT@NBT

A health integration team for Parkinson’s and other movement disorders, comprising of specialist doctors and nurses and researchers.

The objective of MOVE-hIT is to evolve an internationally-recognised service for Parkinson’s and other movement disorders, by working to fully integrate all aspects of clinical care, translational research and education.

This includes a flagship deep brain stimulation service and a well-established research service.

The team are developing a regional advanced treatment service, whilE striving to transform services for local Parkinson’s patients by developing an interactive, comprehensive care pathway.

The ReMemBr Group

A team of clinicians, researchers, psychologists and nurses, all working to improve the lives of people with dementia through research and clinical services.

Its research spans lifestyle modifications, techniques to improve early diagnosis, medications that might enhance quality of life as well as those that might slow down, halt or even prevent dementia.

The group has close working links with the University of Bristol, Brace and the Dementia Research Group in Bristol. It also runs a cognitive clinic, specialising in early onset or rarer forms of dementia.

BRACE

An independent charity that raises funds for scientific research into dementia and supports researchers in South West England and South Wales. It currently includes the ReMemBr Group and South West Dementia Brain Bank, both based at Southmead Hospital.

Further information

The total cost of the Institute of Clinical Neurosciences is more than £7.5 million. Of that:

The University of Bristol contributed £1.5m for the establishment of the laboratories in the Learning and Research Building.
North Bristol NHS Trust made Elgar House , the site for the Brain Centre, available free of charge – an investment equal to £1.5m, and a further £3m over the next 10 years.

In addition to core funding, the following donations were received:

£600,000 - BRACE charity (www.alzheimers-brace.org)
£450,000 - BrAMS charity (www.brams.org.uk)
£50,000 - Parkinson’s Research Group fundraising
£485,000 - Philanthropic funding through University of Bristol alumni and other supporters.