Professor Alastair Hay chosen for Senior Investigator role by National Institute for Health and Care Research

Professor Alastair Hay

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 .

The NIHR is funded by the Department of Health and Social Care to try and improve health and wealth in the UK through research.

Professor Hay and Professor Richard Martin, Professor of Clinical Epidemiology at the University of Bristol, have both been appointed for second terms. Professor Geraldine Macdonald, Professor of Social Work in the School for Policy Studies has been appointed as a new NIHR Senior Investigator. This means they will help guide research capacity development and enhance career paths for NIHR researchers.

NIHR Senior Investigators are among the most prominent and prestigious researchers funded by the NIHR, recognised for their exceptional contributions to research and their influence in shaping the future of health and care.

Professor Hay, who was also recently elected to Honorary Fellowship of the UK Faculty of Public Health, said: “I am thrilled that the NIHR recognises the contribution the Centre for Academic Primary Care Infection Group makes to its strategic aims. In raising our profile, the award strengthens our ability to conduct and support research to improve the management of common infections in primary care, and ultimately preserve the effectiveness of antibiotics for future generations."

Professor Macdonald said: “I’m really pleased to see the NIHR’s growing recognition of research in social work and social care. I look forward to using this award to further support the NIHR Academy’s investment in capacity building within the sector.”

Professor Martin added: “I am delighted to have been selected as an NIHR Senior Investigator for a second term. It is a great honor, and through this award I aim to further my strong commitment to the NIHR strategic aims of capacity building in NHS and social care research, bringing research to underserved communities, embedding EDI, and expanding industry – academic partnerships.”

The NIHR Academy is responsible for the development and coordination of NIHR academic training, career development and research capacity development. The academy plays a pivotal role in attracting, training and supporting talented health and care researchers to tackle the complex challenges facing the sector.

The NIHR works in partnership with the NHS, universities, local government, other research funders, patients and the public to fund, enable and deliver world-leading health and social care research that improves people's health and wellbeing, and promotes economic growth.

Full details of this year's NIHR Senior Investigator and Senior Investigator appointments are available here: Senior Investigators Cohort 18 | NIHR.

Further information

About the NIHR

The mission of the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) is to improve the health and wealth of the nation through research. We do this by:

Funding high quality, timely research that benefits the NHS, public health and social care;
Investing in world-class expertise, facilities and a skilled delivery workforce to translate discoveries into improved treatments and services;
Partnering with patients, service users, carers and communities, improving the relevance, quality and impact of our research;
Attracting, training and supporting the best researchers to tackle complex health and social care challenges;
Collaborating with other public funders, charities and industry to help shape a cohesive and globally competitive research system;
Funding applied global health research and training to meet the needs of the poorest people in low and middle income countries.

NIHR is funded by the Department of Health and Social Care. Its work in low and middle income countries is principally funded through UK Aid from the UK government.

About the Centre for Academic Primary Care

The Centre for Academic Primary Care (CAPC) at the University of Bristol is a leading centre for primary care research in the UK, one of ten forming the NIHR School for Primary Care Research. It sits within Bristol Medical School, an internationally recognised centre of excellence for population health research and teaching. Follow on Bluesky: @capcbristol.bsky.social and LinkedIn.