Dr Nicholas Machin

From March 2018, Dr Machin has held the post of Consultant Virologist at Manchester Medical Microbiology Partnership (MMMP) and from 2021 has been the Clinical Lead for the Virology department. MMMP is a partnership between Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (MFT) and UK Health Secretary Agency (UK HSA). The Virology laboratory at MMMP is one of the largest in Europe and provides a wide array of clinical diagnostic services to the Trust and the region. It also provides regional and national Public Health services to support the management of outbreaks and the surveillance of infectious diseases. Dr Machin’s current role as a Consultant Virologist includes oversight of the diagnostic services provided by the laboratory including the clinical validation of results and the planning and implantation of new assays. The role has a large direct clinical component, including the provision of inpatient consultations and attendance at MDTs for the wide range of clinical services provided by the Trust. These clinical services include solid organ transplant, haematological malignancy and transplant, maternity services, HIV inpatient services, sexual health, critical care and paediatrics in a large tertiary referral hospital. Dr Machin is directly employed by UK HSA and as such also has extensive experience in the delivery of Virology Public Health services, including the risk assessment and management of persons exposed to preventable viral infections, outbreak response and nationally declared incidents (including the COVID-19 pandemic and Monekypox). In February 2021, Dr Machin was appointed as an Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) doctor for the Trust. In this role he works with the Associate Medical Director and lead nurse for IPC as well as other IPC doctors. He is personally responsible for the Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital, Saint Mary’s Maternity Hospital and the Royal Eye Hospital, sitting on their respective IPC committees and leading on outbreak management.

Dr Machin has clinical interests in Clinical Microbiology and specifically Clinical Virology. Developed in his current role and though experience during training, he is particularly interested in the diagnosis and management of viral infections in sexual health, solid organ and haematological transplant and critically ill patients. He is also interested in and has experience in the diagnosis and management of emerging viral infections having been involved in the recent COVID-19 pandemic and Monkeypox outbreak. Dr Machin was extensively involved in the COVID-19 pandemic from the outset, including the development and implementation of diagnostics and the treatment and management of patients. He has recently been involved at a national level with the management of the Monkeypox outbreak, providing advice on the diagnosis and management of patients. Dr Machin has a specialist interest in the Infection Prevention and Control of Viral infections in hospital settings and has considerable experience in the management of outbreaks, including Viral infections such as Influenza and COVID-19. He also has a strong interest in the use of novel diagnostics in the support of outbreak management, including Whole Genome Sequencing.

Dr Machin sits on the Manchester Medical Microbiology Partnership research and development committee and is responsible for oversight of projects within my department. He is actively involved with research and innovation and has a specialist interest in molecular diagnostics and viral genome sequencing, especially around the characterisation of novel infections and outbreak management. During his specialist training, Dr Machin attended the Virus Discovery in a Clinical Setting course at the Welcome Trust Genome Centre and undertook a placement at the Rare and Important Pathogens laboratory at UK HSA Porton Down where he worked to develop a novel assay PCR assay for the detection of Flaviviruses. He also has an interest in rapid diagnostics for respiratory pathogens and has led on several projects to evaluate and implement testing.

Dr Machin holds an Honorary Senior Lecturer post with the University of Manchester to facilitate undergraduate and post-graduate teaching as well as providing the opportunity to engage in research within the department in collaboration with the University. He is an Educational Supervisor for regional Speciality Trainees and is actively engaged with teaching at a local and regional level. He is also a supervisor for 5th Year Medical Students on attachment to the department from the University of Manchester.

Dr Machin's recent publications reflect the interests in molecular diagnostics, viral genome sequencing, emerging pathogens and assay development. These have been published in journals such as the BMJ, Journal of Clinical Virology Plus, Future Virology, Journal of Infection, International Journal of infectious Diseases, Journal of Minimally Invasive Gynecology, and Clinical Microbiology and Infection. A full list of publications can be obtained by requesting a copy of Dr Machin's CV.

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As Clinical Lead for the Virology Department he is responsible for the governance of the department in terms of the quality and safety of the services that it provides to the region, the Trust and other service users regionally and nationally. Dr Machin leads a clinical team of five consultants and four clinical scientists and works closely with the senior management within the Trust and UK HSA. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr Machin led on a number of large projects within the Trust and regionally, aiming to develop and implement novel diagnostics at pace. This work has also involved working with colleagues within UK HSA at a national level.