Research and development

current research studies

Find out about the current research studies you can take part in, including dementia research, jaw pain, hypertension and stroke rehabilitation.

Improving Black Health Outcomes research project

Clinical Research in Primary Care

At NGPS we want to champion research for the people in our community who may not have access to or information regarding clinical research that may be of benefit. Our vision is to bring cutting edge research opportunities to the people of Newcastle through our established and trusted primary care networks.

we’re looking for people for a new national study

Our team has been selected to run the study for the city for a national research programme.

The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) BioResource project currently has more than 200,000 people from across the UK who have volunteered to take part in research, and the NGPS team are now recruiting in Newcastle. The BioResource is a database of both healthy individuals and patients with different diseases who sign up to be contacted for future research based on their genotype or phenotype.

Using the Newcastle Community Health Bus our team goes out into the city offering new and exciting research opportunities to communities who otherwise may not have access to research.

Find out more about getting involved by emailing us at ngps.research@nhs.net.

Why take part in research?

9.1 million people in England are projected to be living with major illness by 2040. This rising number indicates a clear need for innovation and advancement within the healthcare system. One key driver of innovation is research.

Clinical research paves the way for:

• new and improved medication
• faster diagnoses
• streamlined treatment protocols
• increased clinician interaction and oversite of disease
• groundbreaking advancements in healthcare.

Although 90% of NHS consultations occur in primary care, secondary care dominates the research landscape. The impact is that long-term chronic conditions, which are typically managed in the community, are overlooked. Across the country, areas which struggle with high rates of disease, low income and high deprivation typically have low rates of research engagement. Tapping into primary care could be key to overcoming this lack of representation and diversity in research, enhancing the potential for an equitable recruitment of patients providing quality data to academic and commercial research.

the research team at ngps

Our research team includes Hazel who is the head of R&D and our lead research nurse and has 35 years of research experience. Dr Becci Coles is our Research Operations Lead and a GP based here in the city, Kim is our Research Nurse, and Jodi is our Clinical Research Practitioner. The team are here to  deliver research on behalf of any GP practice interested in research. We do this behind the scenes requiring only a light touch from the practice. We like to call this “research in stealth mode”.

At NGPS we have developed our own R&D strategy which aligns to the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) and regional Integrated Care Board (ICB) strategic views, sharing the vision to deliver high quality, diverse research for the benefit of the Newcastle population.

Current studies

At NGPS we support primary care to engage in and deliver research in various ways. We do this is by supporting busy GP surgeries to identify, screen, and contact suitable potential participants from their patient cohorts. We also deliver research and carry out all study procedures directly from the practice.

The following is a selection of current studies where we work in this capacity:

• ASCEnD is a pragmatic open label randomised controlled trial in bipolar depression of quetiapine vs aripiprazole/sertraline combination. The searches, screening of the list, and sending of the SMS messages to suitable patients will be performed by the research team on behalf of the practice.
• STRIPE – This is the study of treatments in paediatric eczema
• ReSTORe – This is an online exercise and support programme for those with long-term mild to moderate physical and/or mental health disability after stroke
• The Smell Test Direct is sponsored by the Michael J Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research and is a simple scratch and sniff test that aims to understand the link between the loss of smell and the risk of brain disease.
• UK EDI is a study for the early detection of pancreatic cancer funded by Cancer research UK. This study explores the link between new onset of diabetes and pancreatic cancer.
• OPTIMISE-2 is a new study looking to optimise the treatment of hypertension in older patients who may be at risk of serious adverse events. Here the research team will see patients and deliver the study within their own GP practices.

Registries

We also actively engage both patients and primary care centres in the benefit of research registries. Here patients can follow a quick and easy web link to register interest with studies that may be of benefit or interest to them. This empowers the patient to access research and the potential benefit of the study. We facilitate this by contacting patient cohorts on behalf of the surgeries via text message, directing them to the registry.

We work with registries such as:

• Research +Me which is a local registry that gives people the chance to take part in clinical research. This registry is open to anyone over the age of 18; healthy volunteers can register interest as well as anyone with a current or previous health condition
• Discover Me is a national registry collecting genetic information about people to try and identify patterns of disease.

For more information on current primary, community, and residential care research from NIHR please follow the link: Primary, Community & Residential Care Research – NIHR CRN NENC

For any enquiries please don’t hesitate to contact us at ngps.research@nhs.net