The Mental Health Research for Innovation Centre (M-RIC)in Liverpool is one of two MH-TRC Mission demonstrator sites.
A strategic partnership between Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust and the University of Liverpool, M-RIC is dedicated to transforming mental health care and treatments.
Watch the “Watch is M-RIC” video below to learn more about their work. Alternatively, you can access the Easy Read booklet “What is M-RIC?”.
Demonstrator Site Co-Directors
Professor of Connected Mental Health, University of Liverpool
Consultant Psychiatrist, Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust
W.H. Duncan Chair in Public Health System,
Associate Pro Vice Chancellor for Innovation, Civic Health Innovation Labs (CHIL) Director, University of Liverpool
Non-Executive Director, Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust
Honorary Professor, University of Manchester
The team at M-RIC is made up of leading experts in the fields of clinical psychiatry, public health, research, data and innovation.
Research focus
M-RIC brings together academic researchers, healthcare professionals, industry partners and service users and carers to co-develop and evaluate new mental health treatments and service innovations.
By embedding research within Mersey Care, one of the UK’s largest providers of mental health and community services, M-RIC is able to quickly translate scientific findings into practical improvements in care delivery.
The Centre has six core research areas: data access for mental health, digital avatars for clinical engagement, innovations in mood disorder care, child and adolescent digital mental health, neuroimmune therapeutics for psychosis, and population mental health strategies.
Patient and public involvement and engagement is central to M-RIC’s work with 10 service users and carers working within our research teams. They are supported by a wider group of 30 public advisors who provide input and feedback at meetings, workshops, and events.
Regional context
M-RIC is based in Liverpool, an area affected by social and economic disadvantage and disproportionately poor mental health outcomes. People accessing mental health services in Liverpool have a life expectancy around 20 years shorter than the UK average. Despite this, the area has historically received limited mental health research funding.
The award of £10.5 million by the Office of Life Sciences and the MH-TRC to support M-RIC’s work marks a pivotal investment in addressing these inequalities and enhancing access to high-quality mental health care.
Research aims
M-RIC is improving mental healthcare through pioneering research embedded within NHS services. Clinicians, scientists, industry collaborators, service users and carers co-design interventions that are both evidence-based and responsive to patient needs. Research activities span clinical trials, digital technology development, discovery science, and service improvement initiatives. A key ambition is to establish Liverpool as a global leader in integrated mental health discovery science. This includes creating a world-first ‘mental health learning system’ – a dynamic infrastructure that supports continuous improvement in care through real-time data analysis, innovative treatments and cross-sector collaborations.
Impact
M-RIC’s strong links to Mersey Care enable research to conducted alongside local service users and carers in or close to the communities most affected with findings able to be rapidly implemented to improve care and treatments. Mersey Care and the University of Liverpool’s partnership is expanding research capacity and fostering excellence in mental health science.
