- HSE wins €45,000 digital transformation award for the development of a National Electronic Research Management System (NERMS)
- NERMS will help to increase the capacity of Ireland’s healthcare system to host internationally-sponsored research.
HSE Research & Development (HSE R&D) has received a €45,000 award from the Public Service Innovation (PSI) Fund 2022 towards the development of a National Electronic Research Management System (NERMS).
HSE R&D was one of 17 project proposals to have recently received the award from the PSI Fund 2022, operated by the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform (DPER), having submitted a project in the category of ‘digital transformation’.
Ana Terres, Head of Research & Evidence for the HSE, said:
“This is a great endorsement of this initiative and our aim to bring a consistent and more streamlined approach to the research application process across the HSE. This funding enables us to move this project forward and I would like to thank the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform.”
What is NERMS?
Extensive investigation by HSE R&D in recent years has documented the challenges facing researchers in the existing research landscape. This new system is an up-to-date research management tool, which will allow researchers in the HSE and its funded organisations to create and submit research applications through a cloud-based portal. For example, it can be used for the registration of research studies, the completion of ethics assessments, and the management of governance processes (such as data protection compliance, contractual obligations, risk assessment and others).
The system will replace current paper-based practices, and will enable the standardisation of research approval and oversight procedures. It will also will allow for a greater level of standardisation and cohesive practices in areas including ethics review, data protection and institutional governance.
The specifications for the NERMS project, which is at tender stage, have been designed by an expert working group over a period of twenty-four months, based on an extensive comparison of relevant information technology systems on the market. The PSI Fund 2022 award will allow HSE R&D to retain the services of a specialised Solutions Architect to assist with the intricate design phase of system development.
NERMS will be tailor-made to suit the complexities of the HSE organisational structure, as well as Irish regulatory and legislative requirements, and will feature significant structural flexibility to enable local workflow requirements while maintaining a national cohesive system architecture.
