Critical care consultant Professor Paul Dark has been appointed a National Institute for Health Research Senior Investigator – recognising him as one of the most prominent and prestigious researchers funded by the NIHR and the most outstanding leaders of patient and people-based research.
He is one of just 30 new Senior Investigators, with 25 previous awardees also reappointed.
Collectively, Senior Investigators help guide research capacity development and enhance the career paths of NIHR researchers, including taking part as mentors in the NIHR mentoring programme.
Professor Dark is also the national Clinical Research Network academic and clinical oversight strategic lead for a cluster of four NIHR specialties – critical care; trauma and emergency care; anaesthesia, perioperative medicine and pain management; and dermatology.
He played a key role in the research response to the Covid-19 pandemic, advising the Department of Health and Social Care on urgent public health research into vaccines, treatments and diagnostic tests.
He is Professor of critical care medicine at The University of Manchester, a critical care consultant at Salford Royal and NIHR Manchester Biomedical Research Centre (BRC) Respiratory Non-fungal Infections Programme Lead. As a researcher, he has a particular interest in sepsis, novel diagnostics, the development of integrated pathways of care and improving global humanitarian responses – he is also Research Professor at the University’s Humanitarian and Conflict Response Institute, providing strategic interdisciplinary leadership in health and social justice.