Around £25m of investment is set to support new research into how the UK can combat multiple long-term conditions (MLTC), the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) has announced.
The new research will look to develop and advance understanding of MLTC and is being funded in conjunction with UK Research and Innovation’s Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council.
The NIHR say the commissioning for the project is part of a phased approach and, in the first stage, nine groups have been allocated £1.75m to complete developmental works in order to establish specialist innovation hubs.
While older people are more likely to live with MLTC, the impact it has on people at all ages is significant and the younger people who are affected still have complex needs and require treatment and support.
NIHR chief executive, Professor Lucy Chappell, said: “More people than ever are living with more than one long-term condition. We now need to look at how we best arrange our health and care services to meet their needs, and those of their carers, moving towards a person-centred approach.”
She continued: “Supporting research into multiple long term conditions continues to be a key priority for NIHR. I am particularly delighted that NIHR is partnering with the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council for these proposed Innovation Hubs, so that we can bring the best of two research communities together to tackle this important challenge."
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