- Research showcase held to highlight research underway at the Aston Institute for Health and Neurodevelopment
- Researchers met with local clinicians and funding bodies to talk through their latest developments
- The event will take place each year with a plan to invite guests back to update them on how the institute has progressed.
Aston Institute of Health and Neurodevelopment (IHN) held its inaugural research showcase event on Thursday 7 July at Conference Aston.
The yearly event is an opportunity to highlight its research projects and meet with the Institute’s external partners, funding bodies and professional colleagues.
Guests were invited to join IHN’s research and teaching team to learn more about its vision and hear about individual research projects currently underway.
The centre’s co-directors Professor Jackie Blissett and Professor Gavin Woodhall talked about IHN’s vision which includes:
• unlocking the potential of research to support child health and development
• answering the questions that matter to children and young people, their families and the services that support them
• developing the next generation of research leaders in child health and development.
Researchers working on projects including treatments for drug resistant epilepsy, childhood eating behaviour, improving support for people with rare neurogenetic conditions and diagnosis of paediatric brain cancer using magnetic resonance imaging and artificial intelligence met with external partners and clinicians to talk them through their latest projects and developments.
The event was also attended by Aston University Interim Vice-Chancellor, Saskia Loer Hansen, Executive Dean of the College of Health and Life Sciences, Anthony Hilton and other members of the University executive team, together with academic researchers in the University’s College of Health and Life Sciences.
There was also an opportunity to meet all the Institute’s researchers, ask questions and network.
Professor Jackie Blissett, co-director of Aston Institute of Health and Neurodevelopment, said: “After a successful launch of our new £2.8 million MRI scanner earlier this year, it is great that we were able to come together again and showcase all of our research that goes on in IHN, particularly to our external partners, including local clinicians and funding bodies.
“This is our inaugural research showcase and we plan to invite guests back to Aston University each year to update them on how the institute has progressed with its research.
“As a research institute that puts children and young people at the heart of what we do, it is important to be in touch with all of our partners from a cross section of the community to update them on all of our latest developments and find ways to collaborate further – particularly in clinical settings.”
For more information about research being undertaken at AIHN please go to our website. If you are interested in the courses we have available in this area please go here.
- Notes to editors
About Aston Institute of Health & Neurodevelopment (IHN)
Molecules to minds | Putting children at the heart of research
• IHN unlocks the potential of research to support children’s health and development
• IHN answers the questions that matter to children, families and the services that support them.
• IHN develops the next generation of research leaders in children’s health and development
Purpose | Goals
Research | Teach | Share
IHN is developing a research programme, focused on children and young people, that delivers a new understanding of development, disorder and disease and the interventions that will make a difference.
To do this we will work to:
• Establish new models and understanding of childhood disease and developmental processes and use these to inform therapeutic and social interventions;
• Train future leaders to think and lead with an integrated approach to research, collaborating with other scientists and experts in the humanities, business, social sectors and beyond;
• Embrace and integrate teaching into our research, providing students with opportunities to engage with and learn about our work throughout their time at Aston;
• Engage and inform the public to accelerate our mission to deliver the best possible options and outcomes for every child. We will provide opportunities to work with us to bring additional depth to our studies, resources and partnerships.About Aston University
Founded in 1895 and a University since 1966, Aston is a long established university led by its three main beneficiaries – students, business and the professions, and our region and society. Aston University is located in Birmingham and at the heart of a vibrant city and the campus houses all the university’s academic, social and accommodation facilities for our students. Saskia Loer Hansen is the interim Vice-Chancellor & Chief Executive.
Aston University was named University of the Year 2020 by The Guardian and the University’s full time MBA programme has been ranked in the top 100 in the world in the Economist MBA 2021 ranking. The Aston MBA has been ranked 12th in the UK and 85th in the world.
For media inquiries in relation to this release, contact Rebecca Hume, Press and Communications Manager, on (+44)7557 745416 or email: r.hume@aston.ac.uk