This practice is part of the local Primary Care Research West Midlands North (PCR WMN). The network is funded by the Department of Health to undertake research to improve patient care.
Research is an important part of healthcare. It is used to learn more about illness; how to prevent it and how to treat it.
What does this mean for you?
You may be invited to take part in a research study. Whether or not you take part is entirely up to you, and the decision you take will not affect any of your medical care.
Your medical records and how they are used
We may be asked to share information we hold in medical records as part of the research. We always do this in a way that protects your privacy and gives you the option to opt out of research.
There are strict measures in place at the practice and with the researchers to keep your records confidential. The way in which we do this is set out in the leaflet “Use of your medical records”, please ask for a copy.
For some studies researchers are interested in what is recorded in the medical records, for example, how many people have diabetes or arthritis and what treatment they receive. For these studies we use ‘anonymised records’, which means all identifying information such as name, address etc has been completely removed. We can make this information available without your written permissions as they do not contain any information which could identify you.
How do you opt out of research?
If you do not wish to take part in the kind of studies described above, please talk to the practice staff. We can record this information so that you are not included in future projects.
If you are invited to take part in research you can decide whether to take part or not, your normal treatment will not be affected.
How do you learn about the results of research?
Results are fed back through poster displays that appear from time-to-time in waiting rooms and as newsletters.
There are three types of studies we conduct?
Clinical trials. These compare two or more treatments. Treatments which are known to be unhelpful or unsafe would never be used. The treatment you receive is decided at random. This helps to compare the treatments fairly.
Surveys. Many questionnaires are sent out and the replies studied to identify how illness develops and affects daily life. We sometimes invite people who have replied to attend a clinic for a more detailed assessment.
Interviews. You are interviewed about your condition and experiences. The recorded interviews are analysed to give an in-depth impression of your experiences and condition. Some studies may provide no direct benefit to you. We hope that the research will help other people with similar problems in the future.
