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The ARISE programme

The College was a partner of the ARISE project from January 2019 to October 2024.   

Funded by the EU, the aim of the project was to further establish an inter-agency and multidisciplinary staff exchange programme between researchers, early start investigators, and other relevant staff members of the project partners institutions. To enable sharing and dissemination of best practices in Newborn Screening, diagnosis, and treatment of Sickle Cell, leading to sustainable improvement in overall disease outcome.

This evolving body of work involved 11 other partner institutions across the UK and Europe, such as Guys and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust, The Benzi Foundation in Italy, and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. The University of Illinois, Chicago, Strathmore University, Kenya, and Barau Dikko Teaching Hospital, Nigeria were 3 of 8 other organisations, and 9 affiliated entries involved outside the UK and Europe.

The programme comprised of a General Assembly, which included all members of the consortium, a Steering Committee, led by Fedele Bonifazi (Duccio) the Project Coordinator, and Professor Baba Inusa, Scientific Coordinator, and a Project Management Team. 8 work packages directed activities across the project. 

Principally the College was involved with Work Package 3 and appointeded Dr Wale Atoyebi Clinical Lead for the Project. This working group focused on improving laboratory diagnostics and quality assurance systems for population screening.  This was done jointly with partner institutions represented by our colleagues from the University of Campania, the University of Padova, Italy and the Instituto Politécnico de Lisboa, Portugal.  

Dr Wale Atoyebi

  • RCPath Clinical Lead for the ARISE project & co-opted member of the International Committee

    Dr Wale Atoyebi is a Consultant Haematologist, lead clinician for red cell disorders at the Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Oxford and honorary senior clinical lecturer at Oxford University. He underwent his haematology training in Oxford. His main interests are haemoglobinopathies and disorders of iron metabolism including diagnostics utilising an Oxford NGS iron regulatory panel. Dr Atoyebi is member of the NHS England, Clinical Reference Group for Haemoglobinopathies and on the editorial board of the 2018 Standards for the Clinical Care of Adults with SCD in the UK. He is also involved in collaborative research focused on strengthening healthcare systems by improving best practice in the diagnostics and management of SCD in Sub-Saharan Africa.


Work package 3 principally involved developing and implementing a comprehensive education programme in population screening management approaches, including techniques for haematological analysis and improving laboratory diagnostic testing services including quality and capacity for diagnosis, treatment, and monitoring of Sickle Cell Disease.

Underpinned by the following tasks:

  • Improving laboratory diagnosis and quality assurance systems for population screening.

  • Design of national prevention policies.

  • Laboratory protocols for haemoglobin analysis and SCD diagnosis.

  • Laboratory Accreditation & External Quality Assurance (EQA) M1-M48.

Achievements of Work Package 3 

This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement No. 824021.