REMEDY team eager to support more patients access research after regional award win
A team of researchers has set its sights on expanding its scope to support yet more patients access cutting-edge healthcare through research after recently winning a regional award.
The Research in Emergency Medicine in Derby and Burton (REMEDY) team was one of three entries to this year's National Institute for Health and Care Research's (NIHR) East Midlands Clinical Research Network (CRN) Awards, and won the prize for Outstanding Achievement by a Team for their work in helping more than 3,500 patients enrol into clinical research since their formation in 2017.
The team, which has colleagues embedded and based in the emergency departments (EDs) at both Royal Derby Hospital and Queen's Hospital Burton, actively works with colleagues to identify patients who are suitable for and may benefit from taking part in research.
Patients are supported to sign up to studies and trials across a range of specialities, including sepsis, ankle and wrist injuries, cardiology, and respiratory.
Speaking of their pride at being announced as winners at the ceremony in March, Alison Fletcher, Lead Research Nurse, said:
"It was very unexpected for us to be announced as winners. We were in the same category as some bigger and amazing teams, with equally impressive achievements, so for our team to be recognised and celebrated was incredible.
"We are really proud of the work we do and the fact we have grown from something so small into this wonderful team today."
The REMEDY team is made up of eight colleagues from a variety of professional backgrounds and with a range of experience working in both emergency medicine and research. This has allowed the team to seamlessly slot into our emergency departments in Derby and Burton, allowing them to work collaboratively to with ED teams to help as many patients as possible access the benefits of health research.
Such has been the success of the team, it has become the highest recruiter in the country for two research studies - the PRONTO study (PROcalcitonin and NEWS2 evaluation for Timely identification of sepsis and Optimal use of antibiotics in the emergency department), which helps to identify patients with suspected sepsis faster by using a test which returns results within 20 minutes, allowing them to receive the right care at the right time whilst reducing unnecessary use of antibiotics; and the DASHED study (Diagnosis of Acute Aortic Syndrome [AAS] in the Emergency Department).
The team has helped more than 1,700 patients enrol onto the PRONTO study and a further 678 onto the DASHED study, which aims to find out how effective current methods of diagnosing AAS - a condition affecting the aorta which can lead to preventable deaths - are to help improve treatments going forward.
Despite this success, the team is keen to develop their offering further still, with Lianne Hufton, Research Practitioner, saying they want to support more patients and clinical areas to get more involved in research:
"Our aim is to give as many patients as possible the opportunity to participate in research. We'd love our team to grow so we can deliver a wider range of trials around the clock."
Marcus Bateman, Consultant Physiotherapist, and Emma Bamford, Extended Scope Practitioner, were also shortlisted for awards at the CRN East Midlands ceremony for their research into upper limb and hand injuries respectively, highlighting the level and breadth of impactful research underway across UHDB.
Elisha Cousins (Research Nurse) said it was fantastic to see colleagues putting the Trust on the map for research, adding: "It was brilliant that multiple colleagues were nominated and we could enjoy the afternoon together. It's a great platform to raise our profile, show what we do and hopefully there will be many more successes in the future."