28.11.19
‘Research effect’ can benefit all NHS Trusts says RCP
The Royal College of Physicians (RCP) has launched the next phase of a campaign for more research to be used in NHS trusts to further build on patient care.
The next phase, launched yesterday (27 Nov) calls for ‘protected time for research’ to be undertaken by doctors, nurses and other clinicians.
An RCP statement Benefiting from the ‘research effect’: The case for trusts supporting clinicians to become more research active and innovative, was launched yesterday in Liverpool’s Foresight Centre.
The newly launched statement is endorsed by 20 different organisations, including the Academy of Medical Sciences, The Medical Schools council; and the Association of Medical Research Charities.
In the statement, the benefits of research for patients, trusts and staff are clearly outlined with patients receiving a better care experience and improved outcomes from implementing ‘the research effect’.
Investing time into research also has shown improved recruitment and retention of staff, with staff having more job satisfaction and the opportunity to build on new skills and networks.
Professor Cheng-Hock Toh, RCP academic vice-president, said:
“We are providing trust chief executives with a clear case for ensuring that an increase in research activity is within their strategic plans, together with clear and practical steps they and their teams can take to ensure research is embedded in clinical and laboratory practice.
“I want to support chief executives to become champions for promoting equal patient and clinician access to research to unlock the benefits of research for all.”
It comes as part of the RCP’s Delivering Research for all project, calling high-quality research within the NHS ‘everyone’s responsibility’ and ‘crucial to patient care’.
Key recommendations for include introducing clinical research inspections from the Care Quality Commission, encouraging smaller and rural hospitals to become more research active, embedding protected time to research and maintaining medical research funding.