Rachel Walsh
Lead Research and Clinical Trials Pharmacist at Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust
About Rachel
Rachel Walsh is Lead Research and Clinical Trials Pharmacist at Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust. She manages the clinical trials service, designs non-commercial trials, and promotes research within medicines management.
Full Name: Rachel Walsh
Current Role: Lead Research and Clinical Trials Pharmacist
Organisation: Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust
Email: rachel.walsh@merseycare.nhs.uk
Research Topic: Mental health clinical trials, medicines management optimisation, and service evaluation
NHS R&D Programme: Early Career Researcher Programme
Year of Cohort: 2023
Achievements and Research Impact
Rachel has applied programme skills to promote research in her Trust’s Medicines Management department, supporting service evaluations and university collaborations. She contributed to a national strategy embedding research in pharmacy practice, presented at regional events, and runs the clinical trials service while designing multiple non-commercial trials.
Reflections on the NHS R&D NW Programme
Rachel found the Early Career Researcher Programme invaluable for navigating her new leadership role, understanding NIHR’s research ecosystem, and building networking confidence. Key benefits included site visits to leading centres (SLaM, Liverpool CRF, Alder Hey), PPIE insights, Vitae RDF self-assessment for researcher development, and lasting peer support. She highly recommends it for accessible research introductions and leadership growth.
Professional Goals
Rachel aspires to become a Consultant Pharmacist in mental health research, leading innovative trials and research culture development within pharmacy and mental health services.
Congratulations to Rachel Walsh for leveraging the ECRP to establish research leadership, contribute nationally to pharmacy research strategy, and drive clinical trials innovation at Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust.
Join the alumni network
Are you a former participant in NHS R&D North West programmes? Stay connected with our growing community of researchers, innovators, and healthcare professionals.
Reconnect with Peers – Find and collaborate with fellow alumni.
Showcase Your Work – Share your achievements and inspire future researchers.
Mentorship & Networking – Connect with emerging talent and experienced professionals.
How to Join?
Click the button below to fill out a sign-up form and become part of our alumni network!