‘It’s exciting to generate new knowledge and change practice’

As part of our focus on research at the trust, Consultant cardiologist Dr Peter Swoboda talks about his research journey

My role at the trust is a joint appointment, so I spend half my time working in a clinical role and the other half in a research position at the University of Leeds.

My current research work examining the impact of endurance sports on the heart is funded by the British Heart Foundation (BHF). It can also be a competitive arena to get into – but for those that succeed it really is worth it. Funding is a crucial part of the research process which relies on strong collaboration between NHS and University.

It can be difficult to juggle clinical and research commitments. All of us working in the NHS want to be flexible and supportive of service needs, but you do need to have boundaries. I set aside two days a week for research and try to preserve those.

I’m very lucky to have fantastic teams, both within the trust and at the university, which helps hugely with this aspect. The research team at Mid Yorks are doing a great job, which provides resilience, and the university teams can get on without me on the days I’m not there. The NHS is all about teamwork.

Research should be part of the day-to-day work, not an after-thought. It should be easier to do research than not to do research. According to the GMC, normalising and promoting research should be carried out by all doctors in the NHS.

In terms of the research and trials we take part in, we are really punching above our weight here at Mid Yorks. However there is room for research to grow further, as we continue on our journey to becoming a university trust.

When you discover something for the first time, that no one else has discovered, it’s a wonderful feeling. Generating knowledge is really exiting. Some of the research work I’m doing around athletes will generate new knowledge and have a real impact on people, and hopefully allow as many people as possible participate in sport as safely as possible.

As well as that new knowledge and discovery, research also enables you to change practice. All that time and effort is worth it because it can make a huge difference, not just in terms of changing your own practice, but changing the practice of clinicians in the NHS and beyond. And those changes ultimately improve patient experience and outcomes, which is what we are all here to do.