Healthy Society
We are innovating new technologies and strategies to improve health services and support the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of disease.
We are doing this by bringing together science disciplines and integrating them with clinical and public health practices. We aim to improve health in the UK and worldwide.
Sub-themes
Within each theme, we have identified sub-themes of particular areas of research strength, and areas that offer opportunities to build new strengths. These sub-themes will be developed and refined by working groups.
- Transforming Healthcare Through Data-driven Research – advancing our knowledge and capabilities to collect, secure and mine data, allowing us to develop new interventions, improve prediction, diagnostics and prevention of disease, and apply AI to medical systems
- Understanding of Population Health – using data at scale to assess the effects of exposures on human health and linking these back to mechanisms, identifying high risk groups, and modelling preventative approaches
- Precision Treatment – using clinical data, genetics, phenomics and environmental exposure together with a deeper knowledge of disease to develop a better understanding of the patient and develop approaches to identify new targeted treatments, and develop new diagnostics, gene-editing therapies, drug discovery and nano-medicine
- Advancing Healthcare Management and Innovation – combatting disease, improving patient care and developing more effective and universally accessible healthcare systems, working alongside the NHS, policy makers, industry and patients
- Affordable Healthcare and Technologies for an Ageing Society – using our world-leading research in medical devices, bioengineered materials and systems, imaging, sensing and data analytics to develop effective healthcare solutions
- Education and Behaviour Change – applying our expertise in health research to implement policy and change behaviour at a population level, working with experts in public and patient engagement
Cross-faculty initiatives
Our world-leading research and teaching in health are exemplified by our cross-faculty initiatives and specialist centres.
COVID-19 exemplifies the need for rapid vaccine manufacturing and the impact of innovative vaccine technologies. Led by Imperial, the Future Vaccine Manufacturing Research Hub pursues vaccine research that impacts developing countries.
The Imperial Global Science Policy Forum is a high-profile network connecting Imperial academics with senior international science and technology advisers and diplomats, UK government policymakers, industry experts and other relevant stakeholders.
Researchers from Imperial, Google Health, DeepMind, the NHS and Northwestern University have shown that a computer algorithm is as effective as human radiologists in spotting breast cancer from x-ray images. Image Credit: The CRUK-funded OPTIMAM database.
The MRI Physics Collective brings together researchers and scientists from across the College and the NHS who have an interest in MRI Physics.
The NIHR Health Protection Research Unit conducts a broad range of research addressing the complex and inter-related causes driving antimicrobial resistance and healthcare-associated infections.