The Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences (NDPCHS) Clinical Trials Unit (CTU) held the PRINCIPLE-PANORAMIC Celebratory Symposium at Trinity College. This was a celebratory event showcasing the collaborative efforts and ground-breaking work that went into the PANORAMIC and PRINCIPLE clinical trials that evaluated potential treatments for COVID-19 during the pandemic.
The day-long event featured presentations from those involved in the trials, a panel Q&A, a keynote speech delivered by Professor Jonathan Van-Tam, former Deputy Chief Medical Officer for England, who had provided advice to the PANORAMIC clinical trial, and the highly anticipated art exhibition highlighting the importance of diversity and inclusion in clinical research.
Find out more about the day: Celebrating innovation: The PRINCIPLE PANORAMIC Celebratory Symposium.
The Art Exhibition: Visualising the Journey
As attendees entered Trinity College’s Garden room, they were immediately captivated by the vibrant and emotive portrait display lining the room. The exhibition titled ‘The PANORAMIC PRINCIPLE’ brought to life the human stories behind the clinical trials, with each piece representing the dedication, resilience, and collective spirit of the trial managers, researchers, healthcare workers, influencers, and trial participants who contributed to assessing COVID-19 treatments.
The exhibition features portraits accompanied by insightful quotes, adding depth, context, and a personal narrative to each photo.
The CTU’s first commissioned artist-in-residence Tanya Poole remarked, “I use ink as a medium and I feel it’s a sympathetic medium for portraiture. It has properties that are delicate, layered, sometimes uncontrolled, and can be evocative of narratives and nuances of expression”.
During the exhibition’s opening ceremony, Professor Geoffrey Batchen, Professorial Fellow of History of Art at Trinity College, expressed the need for creativity in science.
“Tanya shows us that the people working away behind the scenes to bring a pandemic under control are just like us, a diverse community of singular characters, some earnest, some amusing, all dedicated to serving their fellow citizens. Hopefully, this collaboration of science and art can act as a model for future projects. It would be wonderful if a small percentage of major science budgets were allocated to an artistic collaborator of one sort or another. It would help bring science to a broader community, and involve artists in the work of science (as it once was, throughout the 19th century)”, said Geoffrey Batchen.
The heartfelt portraits served as a powerful reminder of the profound impact that can be achieved through collaboration and a shared commitment to public health.
Advancing Equity in Clinical Research
Following the art exhibition, the symposium transitioned to a series of presentations and addresses, featuring insights from trial managers, scientists, researchers, health economists, and industry leaders. Among the highlights of the day was the presentation delivered by Professor Mahendra Patel, Chief Executive Officer of the Oxford Centre for Research Equity.
Mahendra Patel emphasised the critical importance of ensuring that clinical trials are representative of the diverse populations they aim to serve. He shared compelling data and personal anecdotes that underscored the need for greater inclusivity in the research process, highlighting the barriers that often prevent underrepresented communities from participating in clinical trials.
Importantly, he acknowledged the growing recognition that exploring non-traditional avenues like partnering with faith-based groups or ‘influencers’ can be effective in reaching and engaging communities in scientific research as was the case during the PANORAMIC and PRINCIPLE trials.
He expressed that the experience of learning about the various components and collaborative efforts that came together to execute the PANORAMIC and PRINCIPLE trials across the UK was truly remarkable. However, the opportunity to see this journey captured through the powerful and insightful artistic interpretations of the artist-in-residence, Tanya Poole, was simply “awe-inspiring”.
He further remarked:
“It is a proud moment for the Centre for Research Equity, as it was established as a direct result of all the excellent work around reaching out to and engaging people from socio-economically and ethnically diverse communities UK-wide. The novel initiatives developed around inclusive research to help ensure the evidence gathered is generalisable to all has been a key feature of our inclusion and diversity recruitment strategy, and so it's uplifting to see the clear appetite to help build on this learning through the Centre.”
In a digital version of the exhibition, Co-chief investigator of the trials Professor Chris Butler wrote that:
“A vital aspect of PRINCIPLE and PANORAMIC was our aim to ensure external validity through maximising diversity and inclusivity in the trial population…the art needed to communicate this, on the one hand being representative, but on the other being able to get under skin, deep into the lived experience of the contributors that all gave so much, including the nurses, statisticians, methodologists, GPs, research professions in the networks, funders, officials, and of course the study participants from every corner of the UK”.
In prioritising equity and diversity in clinical research, we can unlock the true potential of science to improve health outcomes for all.
The Path Forward: Collaborative Innovation
The PRINCIPLE- PANORAMIC Symposium served as a powerful reminder of what can be accomplished when diverse stakeholders come together in pursuit of a common goal. The presentations, keynote address and art exhibition emphasise the vital role that collaboration, empathy, and a commitment to equity play in driving medical innovation and progress.
As the healthcare community looks to the future, the lessons learned from the PANORAMIC and PRINCIPLE trials will undoubtedly inform and inspire new approaches to clinical research, patient engagement, and community-centred solutions.
A digital version of the PANORAMIC-PRINCIPLE art exhibition is available here. We extend a special thanks to the Five Star Group and Dream Capital, whose funding made this exhibition possible.
