Rowden Surgery has an established Clinical Research Unit which regularly takes part in UK and international studies. We work in partnership with many leading pharmaceutical companies and academic bodies.
The overall purpose of research is to constantly update treatments, further medical knowledge and allow new developments in medicines. This also keeps the practice up to date and encourages overall health monitoring of the patient population.
Frequent areas of study for Rowden Surgery are blood pressure management, cholesterol control, diabetes, asthma, irritable bowel, osteoarthritis, obesity and urinary problems. We are mainly engaged with late phase 2B and phase 3 studies, occasionally a phase 4 study.
Rowden Surgery is also part of a sentinel network where practice data is used for supporting Surveillance, Quality Improvement, Research and Education. This is all GDPR compliant and it is not possible to share identifiable data. We are currently involved in virological surveillance for Covid-19.
The studies are varied, some may be looking at new methods of administering established drug; some may be looking at new dose regimes to establish a quicker and more effective response to disease management; while others may be comparative studies looking at two or more similar drugs on the market to determine which is the most effective.
Other studies may be looking at totally new medicines to establish effectiveness and the best dose regimes. All the studies taken on by Rowden Surgery are chosen carefully so that the practice as a whole can benefit from the research.
Patients who choose to be involved in the studies receive individual consultations from the research doctors and careful monitoring from the research nurses on a regular basis. Suitable patients for each study are identified through a database search and then approached by the research team.
Study Phases
Phase 1 Studies
Phase 1 studies – are early studies conducted in hospital on healthy volunteers following animal and cell trials. They are looking at safety and tolerability in a controlled medical environment.
Phase 2A Studies
Phase 2A – small cohort groups of volunteers who have the disease under study. They are looking at the safety/tolerability of drug and effectiveness.
Phase 2B Studies
Phase 2B are larger scale groups following successful findings in Phase 2A; looking at tolerability, side effects and effectiveness.
Phase 3 Studies
Phase 3 studies – large groups of patients with the indicated disease ie diabetes. Looking at efficacy (desired outcome) usually vs another drug, dose finding, tolerability and side effect prior to registration with the FDA (US Food and Drug Administration).
Phase 4 Studies
Phase 4 studies are post market studies ie licensed drugs, looking at long term effects and outcomes usually against a comparator.
Our Research Team
Dr Richard Gaunt – Principal Investigator
Dr Alistair McKibbin – Principal Investigator
Dr Christine Voss – Principal Investigator
Dr Sarah Rayne – Principal Investigator
Clare Macdonald – Research Nurse
Teresa Connolly – Research Nurse
Tracey Thrower – Administrative Assistant
Carol Maskrey – Research Nurse
Get involved!
Your help will always be greatly appreciated – if you are interested in participating in any of our studies please do not hesitate to contact us for more information.
Our Direct Line is 01249 652086.
If we are unable to answer your call, feel free to leave a message. Our team will ensure to get back to you as soon as possible.
We look forward to hearing from you.