Professor Helen Snooks

Professor Helen Snooks
Personal Professor
Medicine
Telephone: (01792) 513418
Room: Office - 205
Second Floor
Institute of Life Science 2
Singleton Campus

I am currently Professor of Health Services Research in the Medical School at Swansea University. I lead the Patient and Population Health research theme within the School. I am also seconded for one and half days a week to the National Institute for Health Research Evaluation, Trials and Studies Coordinating Centre (NETSCC) at University of Southampton as Health Technology Assessment Journal Editor and Senior Scientific Advisor. I have also led the Trials Unit in Swansea to full registration with the UKCRN, retain a strong interest in experimental evaluation methods and have a strong record of grant capture > £30 million. My main research interests and expertise lie in the fields of Emergency Pre-hospital and Unscheduled Care, Primary Care, and research support. In these areas, the focus of my work is to plan, design and carry out evaluations of health technologies and new models of service delivery which often involve changing roles and working across boundaries between service providers. The research is applied, pragmatic and leads to change and impact in the real world of policy and practice. I actively encourage and support public and patient involvement in my research to enhance relevance, accountability and quality. My work is strongly patient-focused and collaborative, and uses mixed methods to achieve study aims.

Areas of Expertise

  • Health services and delivery research
  • Health Technology Assessment
  • Health Informatics related to: Emergency and Unscheduled Care; Chronic Conditions Management

Publications

  1. & (2018). Patient and clinician factors associated with prehospital pain treatment and outcomes: cross sectional study. The American Journal of Emergency Medicine
  2. et. al. (2018). Predictive risk stratification model: a randomised stepped-wedge trial in primary care (PRISMATIC). Health Services and Delivery Research 6(1), 1-164.
  3. et. al. (2018). Prehospital recognition and antibiotics for 999 patients with sepsis: protocol for a feasibility study. Pilot and Feasibility Studies 4(1)
  4. & (2017). A review of enhanced paramedic roles during and after hospital handover of stroke, myocardial infarction and trauma patients. BMC Emergency Medicine 17(1)
  5. & (2017). Advice given by NHS Direct in Wales: do deprived patients get more urgent decisions? Study of routine data. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health 71(9), 849-856.

See more...

Supervision

  • Emergency admission risk prediction tools in general practice: opportunities and challenges (current)

    Student name:
    PhD
    Other supervisor: Prof Hayley Hutchings
    Other supervisor: Dr Alison Porter
    Other supervisor: Prof Helen Snooks

  • Paramedic Supplied "Take Home" Naloxone: A Feasibility Study (current)

    Student name:
    PhD
    Other supervisor: Dr Alan Watkins
    Other supervisor: Prof Ian Russell
    Other supervisor: Dr Alan Watkins
    Other supervisor: Prof Helen Snooks

  • Pre-Hospital Analgesia for Patients with Hip Fracture: existing methods and opportunities for improvement (current)

    Student name:
    PhD
    Other supervisor: Prof Greg Fegan
    Other supervisor: Prof Ian Pallister
    Other supervisor: Prof Helen Snooks

Career History

Start Date End Date Position Held Location
May 2006 Present Professor of Health Services Research Swansea University Medical School
January 2000 April 2006 Senior Lecturer in Health & Social Care Research Mid & West Wales R&D Support Unit, Clinical School, University of Wales, Swansea
June 1995 December 1999 Clinical Audit and Research Manager London Ambulance Service NHS Trust
January 1991 May 1995 Research Associate Medical Care Research Unit, University of Sheffield
May 1985 January 1987 Research Assistant and then District Information Officer Redbridge Health Authority, Essex
September 1984 January 1985 Statistician Ministry of Housing, Juba, Sudan
January 1980 September 1980 Research Assistant Manpower Services Commission, London

Key Grants and Projects

  • Chief Investigator: TIME 2018 - 2020

    TIME – Take home naloxone Intervention Multi centre Emergency setting, feasibility trial. Funder: NIHR HTA, £563,235.67

  • Chief Investigator HEAR 2017

    HEAR – The health and wellbeing of asylum seekers and refuges in Wales. Funder: Public Health Wales, £44,956

  • GPs In EDs 2017

    Evaluating effectiveness, safety, patient experience and system implications of different models of using GPs in or alongside Emergency Departments. Funder: NIHR HS&DR, £943,936

  • Co-applicant: PHRASe 2016

    Pre-Hospital Recognition and Antibiotics for 999 patients with Severe sepsis: a feasibility trial. Funder: H&CRW, £229,998

  • Chief Investigator: NHS 111 England 2016

    NHS 111 Integrated Urgent Care Workforce Development Programme – Pilot, testing and evaluation project: Evaluation Support Tender. Funder: NHS England and Health Education England , £50,000

  • Co-applicant: ExPLAIN 2016

    Exploring factors increasing Paramedics’ likelihood of administering Analgesia in pre-hospital pain: cross sectional study. Funder: Falck Foundation, £28,000

  • Health and Care Research Wales Senior Research Leaders: 2016

    , £45,000

  • Co-Applicant NEAT - Network exploring Ethics of Ambulance Trials 2016 - 2016

    Funder: Wellcome Trust, £49,681

  • Co-Applicant: ERA 2016 - 2018

    Electronic Records in Ambulances to support the shift out of hospital care: challenges, opportunities and workforce implications. Funder NIHR Health Services and Delivery Research , £380,318

  • Co-Applicant: RAPID - Rapid Analgesia for Pre-hospital Hip Disruption: 2015 - 2017

    A feasibility study for randomised controlled trial. Funder; NISCHR Research for Patient and Public Benefit, £228,759

  • Co-applicant: Using record linkage analysis to inform the development of an improved care pathway(s) for psychiatric and self-harm emergencies currently transferred by ambulance to Emergency Departments. 2015 - 2016

    Funder: Chief Scientific Office - NHS Scotland Health Informatics Research Challenge , £30,000

  • Co-Applicant: TIER - Trans Ischaemic Attack 999 Emergency Referral 2015 - 2017

    A feasibility study. Funder: NISCHR Research for Patient and Public Benefit, £229,819

  • Co-Applicant: Prudent Healthcare 2015 - 2017

    A qualitative study of public clinicians' views of, and participation in, Prudent Healthcare. Funder: NISCHR Research for Patient and Public Benefit, £244,987

  • Chief Investigator: Swansea Clinical Trials Unit 2015 - 2018

    Funder: NISCHR, £800,000

  • Chief Investigator: Swansea Clinical Trails Unit and RDCS 2015 - 2018

    Funder: NISCHR , £800,000

  • Chief Investigator: 2015 - 2016

    Pilot study to validate a clinical tool to aid paramedics in their diagnosis of hip fracture. Funder: WAST, £37,552

  • Co-Applicant: PRIME Centre Wales 2015 - 2020

    Wales Centre for Primary and Emergency Care Research , £4,466,837

  • Co-Applicant: PHED Data Linkage across ambulance services and acute trusts: 2015 - 2017

    Assessing the potential for improving patient care. Funder Health Foundation:, £486,405

  • Co-Applicant: PEARS 2014 - 2019

    Promoting effective and rapid stroke care. Funder: NIHR Programme Grant for Applied Research, with G.Ford, £1,978,718

  • Co-Applicant: Streamlining patient transfer from ambulances to the emergency department. 2013 - 2014

    A scoping study. Funder: Welsh Ambulance Services NHS Trust, £51,748

  • Co-Applicant: CIPHER 2012 - 2017

    Centre for Improvement of Population Health through E-health Research. Funder: MRC consortium of 10 UK Government and Charity Funders, with R.Lyons, £4,373,292

  • Co-Applicant: MINAP 2011 - 2011

    Use and impact of the pre-hospital electrocardiogram in actue coronary syndrome patitents - insights from MINAP. Funder: MRC Consortium, £13,769

  • Co-Applicant: Neath Port Talbot Air Quality Alert: 2011 - 2013

    Evaluation proposal. Funder: Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council, £20,000

  • Co-Applicant: PHOEBE 2011 - 2016

    Developing new ways of measuring the impact of ambulance service care. Funder: NIHR Programme Grant for Applied Research, with J. Turner, N. Siriwardena, £1,980,060

  • Informing delivery of care through research evidence: 2011 - 2013

    An investigation of randomised controlled trial implementation in pre-hospital emergency care. Funder: NISCHR Health Studentship Award , with Gareth Thomas PhD, £59,933

  • Co-Applicant: WWORTH 2011 - 2013

    West Wales Organisation for Rigorous Trials in Health - Clinical Trials Unit. Funder: NISCHR, £1,042,705

  • Chief Investigator: TRUST 2010 - 2015

    Thematic Research network for emergency UnScheduled and Trauma Care - Registered Research Group. Funder: NISCHR , £613,532

  • Co-Applicant: PHECC - Models of regulation and governance of pre-hospital emergency care responders and practitioners. 2010 - 2011

    Funder: Prehospital Emergency Care Council, £22,427

  • Predictive Risk Stratification: 2009 - 2015

    A Trial in Chronic Conditions Management , with M Kingston, H Hutchings, £691,101

Research Groups

  • Health Services Research UK (Board Member)

    HSR UK informs and evaluates innovations in health services and policy, representing and championing UK Health Services Research

  • 999 EMS Research Forum (Chair of Board of Advisors)

    The 999 EMS Research Forum aims to encourage, promote and disseminate research and evidence-based policy and practice in 999 health-care. It is a UK based partnership that brings together academics and health-care providers with a research interest in emergency care

  • PRIME Centre Wales (Associate Director)

    - PRIME Centre Wales is a research centre focusing on primary and emergency care, funded by Health and Care Research Wales, in order to develop and coordinate research proposals and support researchers. It is an all-Wales centre co-led by Cardiff University, Bangor University, University of South Wales and Swansea University, with the aim of improving the health and wellbeing of people in Wales and internationally.

Calling from outside the UK?

+44 1792 513418