Professor Singer is foundation holder of the Chair of Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics at the Graduate Medical School at Warwick University where he founded the Clinical Sciences Division in April 2003. His main interests are in research, education, health policy and public understanding of health and medicines.

He is an active clinician with two major clinical and research interests: prevention and treatment of cardiovascular disease and safe use of medicines. His main research interests are causes of vascular disease, better management of blood pressure and improved patient safety through new pharmacogenomic and e-Health approaches aimed at improving safety and effectiveness in prescribing. He is co-author of the 'Pocket Prescriber', now in its 3rd Edition and in a mobile format, over 100,000 copies sold internationally. His initial major clinical aims at Warwick are establishing a Regional Hypertension Service and building Adverse Drug Reaction Networks. He has an interest in Action Management as a way to bring together leadership and management skills from Public and Private Sectors.

Professor Singer trained in Medicine in Aberdeen before moving to London in 1982 where he worked initially in the Renal Unit at the Royal Postgraduate Medical School. He began his research career in the Blood Pressure Unit at Charing Cross and Westminster Medical School, continuing his research into cardiovascular and renal regulation at St George’s Hospital Medical School and with Sir Magdi Yacoub at the Imperial College National Heart and Lung Institute at Harefield. In 1997 he co-founded the Cardiovascular Research Group (CRG) at St George’s Medical School, which included 60 senior researchers and a further 100 researchers interested in basic science, clinical sciences and research in the community. He was inaugural chair of the CRG from 1997-2002. As London Hypertension Society chair from 1990-2002, he organised annual national and international workshops on a wide range of aspects of cardiovascular disease. In May 2005, he hosted an International Workshop on Pharmacogenomics at the University of Warwick. From November 2004, he was the main Academic Co-ordinator for the 2006 AC21 (Academic Consortium for the 21^st Century) International Forum on ‘Universities, Innovation and the Global Age’ hosted in July 2006 by Warwick University (www.warwick.ac.uk/go/ac21). He led the Wellcome Trust supported International Symposium on Personalised Medicines with the AC21 2006 Research Festival.

Background

Professor Singer trained in Medicine in Aberdeen in Scotland and moved in 1982 to London. He worked initially at the Royal Postgraduate Medical School at the Hammersmith Hospital, moving for his research work to Charing Cross and Westminster Medical School and then to St George’s Hospital Medical School where he also held a joint appointment with Sir Magdi Yacoub in the Heart Science Centre of the Imperial College National Heart and Lung Institute. His MD work examined interactions between the renin-angiotensin system and the vaso-active and natriuretic family of cardiac peptides in relation to blood pressure, heart failure and vascular disease. He also studied genetic mechanisms for cardiovascular and renal disease.

Research

As Senior Lecturer (1996) and Reader (1998) within the Department of Pharmacology & Clinical Pharmacology at St George’s he built a research team studying the role of small vessel disease and oxidant stress in vascular dysfunction. International experience has included projects on hypertension and cardiovascular risk with groups in the USA, Switzerland, Spain and Japan. He has over 120 research, editorial and review publications and has given seminars and lectures at a wide range of international institutions and conferences in the USA, throughout Europe and in Australia, North Africa and South-East Asia.

Leadership, organisation and health

Prior to moving to Warwick, Professor Singer supervised a research group of 6-10 cardiovascular research scientists from multiple disciplines (clinicians, basic scientists, pharmacists, nursing), with 5 higher research PhD and MD degrees arising. He was co-founder and inaugural Chair from 1997-2002 of the most active research theme group at St George’s Medical School in London, the Cardiovascular Research Group. The CRG included 60 senior researchers and a further 100 research scientists from basic sciences, clinical areas and the community. As London Hypertension Society chair he was principal organiser for a wide range of national and international workshops on aspects of cardiovascular disease from 1990-2002. He was a member of the British Hypertension Society Executive Committee from 2006-2009 and is currently a member of Executive Committees of the British Pharmacology Society, a member of the national Health Technology Assessment Pharmaceuticals Panel and President of the Fellowship of Postgraduate Medicine. At Warwick, as Chair of Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics his main interest is in improving patient health and safety through prevention of cardiovascular disease and safety in prescribing. In 2009, he founded the International Hippocrates Prize for Poetry and Medicine. The inaugural awards were presented in April 2010 at an International Symposium on Poetry and Medicine by broadcaster James Naughtie, poet Dr Dannie Abse and NHS Medical Director Sir Bruce Keogh. The 2011 Hippocrates Prize for Poetry and Medicine awards were presented by judges broadcaster Mark Lawson, GP Professor Steve Field CBE and first Welsh national poet Gwyneth Lewis at the 2nd International Symposium on Poetry and Medicine in May, 2011. Judges for the 2012 Hippocrates Prize for Poetry and Medicine include US poet and critic Marilyn Hacker and medical researcher Professor Rod Flower FRS. 2012 awards will be presented on 12th May 2012 at the 3rd International Symposium on Poetry and Medicine at the Wellcome Collection in London.

Clinical Pharmacology