Mrs Sarah Hatch
(she/her)
Engagement Manager
Overview
My role is to support, develop and deliver high quality public engagement with research activity (Superbugs), public involvement in research and teaching activity and civic mission initiatives of benefit to communities. A further important aspect of my role is to drive initiatives that firmly embed public engagement and involvement within the culture of the School of Medicine.
To find out a bit more about what public involvement in research is please watch the following short film here.
To learn more about what public involvement in teaching please watch the following short film here.
The School's Science in Health programme is aimed at engaging school pupils in the research we do in such a way as to inspire, generate positive dialogue with scientists and open up a range of possible scientific and medical careers to the next generation of talent. The Science in Health Public Lecture series also gives us the opportunity to open up for discussion areas of concern in healthcare and present new research on health issues to the public.
Our MEDIC Ambassadors programme faciliates visits by our medical undergraduates, staff and alumni to primary and secondary schools thoughout Wales.
To find out more about the work of the School of Medicine Engagement team, please visit the following web pages:
https://www.cardiff.ac.uk/medicine/about-us/engagement
Publication
2024
- Tyrrell, J. M., Ayanikkad, H. U., Nalleppilil-Gopakumar, V., Oyebode, R., Nmamdi Blessing, C., Hatch, S. and Eberl, M. 2024. Combining postgraduate research training, public engagement and primary school science education - A Superbugs Master (MSc) class. Frontiers in Microbiology (10.3389/fmicb.2024.1380045)
- Nollett, C., Eberl, M., Fitzgibbon, J., Joseph-Williams, N. and Hatch, S. 2024. Public involvement and engagement in scientific research and higher education: The only way is ethics?. Research Involvement and Engagement 10(1), article number: 50. (10.1186/s40900-024-00587-x)
- Hatch, S., Fitzgibbon, J., Tonks, A. J. and Forty, L. 2024. Diversity in patient and public involvement in healthcare research and education—Realising the potential. Health Expectations 27(1), article number: e13896. (10.1111/hex.13896)
- Tyrrell, J. et al. 2024. Superbugs online: co-production of an educational website to increase public understanding of the microbial world in, on and around us. Frontiers in Microbiology 15, article number: 1340350. (10.3389/fmicb.2024.1340350)
2023
- Eberl, M., Joseph-Williams, N., Nollett, C., Fitzgibbon, J. and Hatch, S. 2023. Overcoming the disconnect between scientific research and the public. Immunology and Cell Biology 101(7), pp. 590-597. (10.1111/imcb.12657)
2022
- Tyrrell, J. M. et al. 2022. 'Superbugs': raising public awareness of antimicrobial resistance through a pop-up science shop. Research for All 6(1), pp. 1-21. (10.14324/RFA.06.1.06)
Articles
- Tyrrell, J. M., Ayanikkad, H. U., Nalleppilil-Gopakumar, V., Oyebode, R., Nmamdi Blessing, C., Hatch, S. and Eberl, M. 2024. Combining postgraduate research training, public engagement and primary school science education - A Superbugs Master (MSc) class. Frontiers in Microbiology (10.3389/fmicb.2024.1380045)
- Nollett, C., Eberl, M., Fitzgibbon, J., Joseph-Williams, N. and Hatch, S. 2024. Public involvement and engagement in scientific research and higher education: The only way is ethics?. Research Involvement and Engagement 10(1), article number: 50. (10.1186/s40900-024-00587-x)
- Hatch, S., Fitzgibbon, J., Tonks, A. J. and Forty, L. 2024. Diversity in patient and public involvement in healthcare research and education—Realising the potential. Health Expectations 27(1), article number: e13896. (10.1111/hex.13896)
- Tyrrell, J. et al. 2024. Superbugs online: co-production of an educational website to increase public understanding of the microbial world in, on and around us. Frontiers in Microbiology 15, article number: 1340350. (10.3389/fmicb.2024.1340350)
- Eberl, M., Joseph-Williams, N., Nollett, C., Fitzgibbon, J. and Hatch, S. 2023. Overcoming the disconnect between scientific research and the public. Immunology and Cell Biology 101(7), pp. 590-597. (10.1111/imcb.12657)
- Tyrrell, J. M. et al. 2022. 'Superbugs': raising public awareness of antimicrobial resistance through a pop-up science shop. Research for All 6(1), pp. 1-21. (10.14324/RFA.06.1.06)
Biography
2016 - to present. Engagement Manager, Cardiff University School of Medicine
2010 - 2016. Innovation and Engagement Manager, Cardiff University School of Medicine
2002 - 2010 - Manager of the Cardiff Institute of Tissue Engineering and Repair (CITER), Cardiff University
2000 - 2002 - Political Assistant to Glenys Kinnock and Eluned Morgan MEP
1999 - 2000 - Stagiaire at the Directorate General Research, European Commission – Brussels, Belgium
1998 - World travel
1997 - LLB Honours European Law and French
Engagement
I have a passion for public engagement and involvement that was borne as soon as I joined the University as a member of staff in 2002. Working with scientists, and being from a non-scientific background myself, I understood early on the value of delivering quality public engagement with research and the wide range of benefits that this brings to all stakeholders involved in the engagement process. In addition, over the last five years 'involving' members of the public in research and teaching has also become a priority for research funders and the regulators of our taught curricula.
In my role, I work with colleagues across the School of Medicine and the College of Biomedical and Life Sciences to embed public engagement with research and public involvement with research and teaching. A key aim of my work has been to try and build the critical mass of members of staff that engage and involve members of the public in research and/or teaching, creating a supportive environment that facilitates the sharing of best practice, resources, guidance as well as avoiding any duplication of activity. In 2020, the School of Medicine Executive team approved a proposal to appoint Academic Leads for Public Engagement and Involvement, who would be able to champion this work at the most senior level within the School. Currently, these roles are held by Professor Matthias Eberl and Dr Natalie Joseph-Williams. In addition, Public Engagement and Involvement Champions were identified across the School and there is a continuous open call for members of staff interested in this work.
At the beginning of 2021, a 5-year Action Plan to embed Public Engagement and Involvement into the culture of the School, was approved by the School Executive. This plan closely aligns to the UK Standards for Public Involvement and elements of the National Coordinating Centre for Public Engagement EDGE tool to support and improve the quality and consistency of this increasingly important area of work, and its impact on our core business. Dr Jim Fitzgibbon is our Lead Public Contributor and is a member of the senior public engagement and involvement team in the School of Medicine.
If you are interested in finding out more about our Public Engagement and Involvement Action Plan please do not hesitate to contact me.
Other Work:
I support undergraduate Student Selected Components and facilitate an SSC whereby third- and fourth-year medical students create learning resources (in-classroom/online digital) in partnership with teachers to support identified learning needs within the Curriculum for Wales.
I am Editor of ReMEDy, the School of Medicine's alumni publication circulated throughout GP practices in Wales and other key stakeholders.
In 2019, I established and continue to manage a Public Contributor Network at Cardiff University to raise the profile of this work and to support members of staff involving members of the public in research and teaching activity from across the University.