Health and Social Care Structures

Each NRS Regional Node hosts a Biorepository that holds responsibility for tissue governance for their partner board and supports and facilitates access to surplus diagnostic and surgical tissue for use in research. These nodes form a network of Biorepositories designed to encourage the use of tissue in research and boost the availability of tissue from across Scotland.

The major research Boards across Scotland - North (NHS Grampian), East (NHS Tayside), South (NHS Lothian) and West (NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde) - play a leading role in supporting the delivery of research and R&D Directors from these Health Boards form part of the NRS Strategy Board providing regional expertise and an in-depth view of research activity across Scotland.

Part of NHS Research Scotland (NRS) Network of Data Safe Havens are available in each NRS node. A Data Safe Haven is a secure environment supported by trained staff and agreed processes whereby health data can be processed and linked with other health data (and/or non-health related data) and made available in a de-identified form for analysis to facilitate research. It is a safeguard for confidential information which is being used for research purposes. Any researchers applying for access to health data must adhere to the Safe Haven principles.

Part of NHS Research Scotland (NRS) Network of Data Safe Havens are available in each NRS node. A Data Safe Haven is a secure environment supported by trained staff and agreed processes whereby health data can be processed and linked with other health data (and/or non-health related data) and made available in a de-identified form for analysis to facilitate research. It is a safeguard for confidential information which is being used for research purposes. Any researchers applying for access to health data must adhere to the Safe Haven principles.

The major research Boards across Scotland - North (NHS Grampian), East (NHS Tayside), South (NHS Lothian) and West (NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde) - play a leading role in supporting the delivery of research and R&D. Directors from these Health Boards form part of the NRS Strategy Board providing regional expertise and an in-depth view of research activity across Scotland.

Research Governance concerns setting standards to improve research quality and safeguard the public. It involves enhancing ethical and scientific quality, promoting good practice, reducing adverse incidents, ensuring lessons are learned and preventing poor performance and misconduct. A broad range of regulations, principles and standards of good practice exist to achieve, and continuously improve, research quality across all aspects of healthcare in the UK and worldwide.