The role of the R

1
The role of the RD Support Unit in primary care
research.

• Dr Jenny Ingram
• Primary Care Research Facilitator
• Bristol RDSU.
• 928 3545 or 928 3473

2
RDSUs background and organisation

• RD Support Units are part of the Department of
  Health research support infrastructure.
• Contracts funded and managed by DH RD
  Directorate.
• They are Trust or University based.
• They cover most of the health regions in England.
  
• In Bristol Based across 2 Trust sites BRI and
  Southmead.

3
RD Support Unit

• Aims to promote high quality research and
  development in all areas relevant to the health
  services.
• Its remit is to support any part of the research
  process undertaken by NHS staff, including
• non-medical personnel and those working in
  community or primary care.

4
Core roles and activities of the RDSU

• Support for research
• Consultations Participation in projects
• Provision and dissemination of information
• Newsletters Web site Seminars etc
• Research training
• Regular research training programmes to suite
  different levels and requirements
• Peer reviewing grants and publications
• Assistance with publishing and presenting
• Responses to reviewers Co-authorship
• RD capacity building for the NHS

5
How can we help you?

• Literature searching for background information
  Cochrane reviews and use NELH (Data Star
  databases) and the librarians.
• Study design deciding which one is best and how
  to plan it.
• Protocol development getting this right will
  help complete ethics and governance forms.
• Ethical and research governance permission
  advice and help to complete these stages.

6
How can we help you? Funding advice

• NHS funding streams
• RfPB Research for Patient Benefit project
  scheme -
• responsive funding (new). Call due summer 2006
  (NIHR) .
• HTA Health Technology Assessment -
• there will be some responsive funding
  for pragmatic trials.
• http//www.hta.nhsweb.nhs.uk
• SDO Service Delivery and Organisation
• (no responsive funding)
• http//www.sdo.lshtm.ac.uk/calls.htm
• Research charities and other organisations
• Through RDdirect
• http//www.rddirect.org.uk/ or http//www.rdfundin
  g.org.uk

7
How can we help you?

• Statistical advice- individual consultations,
  sample size calculations or carrying out complex
  analysis.
• Project management and involvement in projects
• Steering group, running focus groups,
  randomisation, designing questionnaires and
  interview schedules, completing ethics forms.
• Publication and presentation of research findings.

8
RDSU Training

• RDSU initiates or supports 3 key training
  programmes run in the UBHT Education Centre
• or at NBT.
• RDSU generic research skills training
• RDSU Fast track training
• RDSU/RD/University Good practice in clinical
  research course

9
Generic training

• Basic introductory training sessions in
• Quantitative and qualitative study design
• Questionnaire design
• Protocol development
• Applications for regulatory bodies e.g. ethics
• Data management
• Data analysis (hands-on session)
• Presentation and publication
• Applying for grant funding
• Usually run as half day sessions

10
Fast track training

• Examples include
• Literature appraisal and its applications
• Ethics, project planning and implementation
• Research publication
• How to run a clinical trial
• Tools of assessment
• Whole day courses

11
Good practice in clinical research

• 5 day course run twice a year
• Covering
• Study design, regulatory applications, project
  management, involving patients and the public,
  research monitoring and reporting responding to
  adverse events, standard operating procedures,
  closing a study, publishing etc from a clinical
  trials perspective.
• 5 days together or one day per week for 5 weeks
  next one in May 2006

12
Research training

• Would you like training to be based in primary
  care?
• If so, where would be convenient?
• What time of day?

13
Bristol RDSU staff

• UBHT
• Rosie Jones co-ordinator for both sites
• Rosemary Greenwood - Medical statistician
• Jenny Ingram Primary Care Research Facilitator
  (across all PCTs) 928 3545
• NBT
• Elise Whitley statistician
• Hazel Taylor - statistician
• Elizabeth Dymond research facilitator