Impact case studies

The Oxford Impacts series celebrates the range of impacts the University has on the world of policy, health, business and culture. All of this is enabled by the world-leading research of Oxford academics. This set of case studies showcases academic research, across a range of subjects, that has had an impact on the world.

If you know of some impact from Oxford research which we should showcase please contact the Innovation and Engagement Team.

Jeremy Howick

Medical evidence through a philosophical lens

Dr Jeremy Howick’s application of philosophical approaches to health science has helped shape how we leverage placebos in clinical trials and treatment, and determine the quality of evidence required in ‘evidence-based medicine’.

flu virus

A breakthrough in the development of a universal flu vaccine

A new approach to making influenza vaccines, based on mathematical models developed at the University of Oxford, could result in the development of a vaccine which will potentially protect people against influenza for a lifetime.

Dr Emily Troscianko

Understanding how fiction-reading can influence eating disorders

An Oxford academic has begun a long-overdue investigation into the psychological effects of fiction on readers – especially those suffering from eating disorders.

A plantation worker collects oil palm

Putting 'no deforestation' into practice in the palm oil industry

Knowledge exchange work at the University of Oxford has led to the successful uptake of science in the development of new industry standards for oil palm plantations. This is helping to protect rainforests, maintain biodiversity and make palm oil production more sustainable.

girl typing with computer

OpenPrescribing: putting data and statistics into action to save the NHS money

To identify the biggest prescribing quality improvement and cost-saving opportunities for General Practices and Clinical Commissioning Groups every month, and help them to improve, the Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences’ EBM DataLab brings together health researchers and software developers to transform large prescribing datasets into useful data explorer tools for coalface NHS staff.

Mind-Boggling Medical History game

Mind-Boggling Medical History

Researchers at Oxford University in partnership with the Royal College of Nursing, have developed a game which helps nurses to develop critical thinking skills and supports evidence-based practice.

wheat field

Increasing crop yields for global food security

Pioneering research between the University of Oxford and Rothamsted Research has led to the development of a new compound that could transform crop yields of all kinds.

Advancing Medical Professionalism

Advancing Medical Professionalism

A new report by Oxford University’s Healthcare Values Partnership and the Royal College of Physicians aims to support doctors’ satisfaction in their profession and promote innovative, high quality healthcare for patients.

Parkinson’s clinic

New ways to measure brain diseases

The OxQUIP project is developing new, more objective ways of measuring symptoms in diseases such as Parkinson’s, in order to speed up diagnosis and the hunt for effective treatments.

Chilli

Measuring chilli heat with electrochemistry

The success of University of Oxford chemists in using electrochemical sensing to detect the spiciness of chillies has led to the recent development of new sensors for garlic, turmeric and ginger.

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