News in 2025

New UK Centre hopes to change public attitudes towards grief 24 April 2025 Grief affects everyone but is still very much a taboo subject in the UK. A new Centre - the first of its kind in the UK - hopes to shift public attitudes towards grief and create communities that are compassionate and connected in their support of people who are bereaved. The Centre for Grief Research and Community Engagement (Grief Centre) at the University of Bristol is launched today [24 April].
New research to support a thriving health and care workforce is launched 9 April 2025 A new national research partnership will explore ways to support wellbeing and sustainability in the NHS and social care same day and urgent care workforce. Funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) and led by UWE Bristol in collaboration with the University of Bristol and nine other institutions, the partnership will investigate the root causes of frequent staff shortages, high employee sickness rates and difficulties recruiting new staff with a view to finding solutions.
Relaxation techniques may help lower high blood pressure—at least in the short term 8 April 2025 Relaxation techniques may help lower high blood pressure—at least in the short term—but the longer term effects are unclear, finds a pooled data analysis of the existing research. The study, led by the Universities of Bristol and Exeter and published and published in BMJ Medicine, is funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR).
Supporting people with heart failure who want to be physically active 7 April 2025 New University of Bristol research on how healthcare professionals can support people with heart failure who want to be more physically active has been published in BMJ Open. The study recommends a personalised approach facilitated by health professionals focusing on both physical and mental health.
New documentary shines light on healthcare responses to violence against women 3 April 2025 A powerful new documentary film, created through the Healthcare Responding to Violence and Abuse (HERA) study, captures the transformative potential of healthcare systems to support women affected by domestic violence. The film was created to amplify women’s voices, shed light on their experiences, and explore how healthcare providers in low-resource settings can better respond to domestic violence.
New guidance to help clinicians improve care for people with multiple long-term conditions 26 March 2025 New guidance for primary care clinicians on how to conduct personalised annual reviews for patients with multiple long-term conditions has been developed by researchers from the Centre for Academic Primary Care, University of Bristol and NIHR Applied Research Collaboration West (ARC West). Patients with multiple long-term conditions need regular reviews to monitor their health, wellbeing and medications.
Professor Alastair Hay chosen for Senior Investigator role by National Institute for Health and Care Research 20 March 2025 Three University of Bristol academics have been awarded Senior Investigator status by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), including Alastair Hay, Professor of Primary Care at the Centre for Academic Primary Care .
Applications open for NIHR School for Primary Care Research-funded summer internships 2025 12 March 2025 We have two exciting summer internship opportunities for UK undergraduates, irrespective of degree discipline, who are interested in primary care research. These are a fantastic opportunity to get hands-on experience conducting primary care research with experts in the field.
Paramedics in GP surgeries may ease workload but not NHS costs, study finds 28 February 2025 Paramedics working in GP surgeries help reduce GP workload but do not contribute to cost savings to the NHS, according to the first major study of the clinical and cost-effectiveness of paramedic compared with GP consultations.
Greater openness about the use of complementary and alternative medicines in UK dairy farming could bring benefits 26 February 2025 Greater openness about complementary and alternative medicines (CAM) use has the potential to strengthen farmer-vet relationships, which may prevent potential unintended harm to animals, reduce antibiotic use and improve herd health management, new research has found. The study led by the University of Bristol is published today [26 February] in Frontiers in Veterinary Science.
Clinicians should be wary of a ‘one size fits all’ approach to communicating blood test results in primary care 25 February 2025 Online access to test results is generally well accepted by patients, but reliance on electronic communication methods alone is not sufficient to meet the needs of different patients and different types of test result, according to University of Bristol led research published in the British Journal of General Practice today [25 February].
Adverse childhood experiences in firstborns associated with poor mental health of siblings 3 February 2025 Children are nearly three-quarters (71%) more likely to develop mental health problems between the ages of five and 18, if the firstborn child in their family experienced adversity during their first 1,000 days, finds a new UCL-led study involving Bristol researchers.
Signposting children to weight management services could happen when parents attend an adult programme 21 January 2025 Parents attending an adult weight management programme, who were worried about their child’s weight, would accept support and signposting to services for their child if it was offered, new research has found. The study is published today [21 January] in BMJ Paediatrics Open.
Patients’ understanding of shingles is poor with some blaming themselves for its onset, study finds 14 January 2025 A study by researchers at the University of Bristol exploring patients’ understanding and experience of shingles has found that many had a limited understanding of the illness before diagnosis and were unprepared for the symptoms they experienced. Health care professionals highlighted stress as a trigger for shingles which led some people to blame themselves for its onset.