News | Helping patients access research they can trust

At Optum, we believe every patient deserves the chance to take part in research that could improve their health and care — and the health and care of others. That’s why we welcome the Health Research Authority’s (HRA) new report, which sets out clearer guidance on how patient information can be used to facilitate research opportunities in a way that’s trusted, transparent and ethical.

Our priority is to work in close partnership with NHS GP practices, helping them to offer patients the chance to take part in research in a safe, responsible and fully complaint way. By collaborating with the NHS, we aim to strengthen patient trust, empower clinical teams in fulfilling their research responsibilities, and accelerate the delivery of studies that drive better outcomes across the health system.

Expanding access to research

Our Recruit solution, built into EMIS-X, already supports many of the HRA’s recommendations. By enabling NHS GP practices to identify and invite eligible patients to take part in clinical trials, we're supporting research to be embedded as part of day-to-day care. This approach supports the HRA concept of “research as care”, and has always been at the heart of Recruit; a GP mediated model built on trust, clinical insight, and a shared commitment to improving lives.

Recruit allows GPs to share relevant trial information with patients in a way that protects confidentiality, builds trust, and promotes fair access. We also support GPs in explaining to patients how their information may be used to highlight research — helping promote transparency and maintain trust. This GP-led, standards-based model supports broader access to research while maintaining privacy and public confidence.

Respecting patient consent and privacy

Working in partnership with NHS GP practices also ensures that any contact about research comes from the patient’s care team. In line with the HRA’s position, healthcare professionals who have a legitimate relationship with the patient may, in principle, rely on implied consent to identify and invite patients to take part in research.

When patients are invited by their GP practice, Recruit supports the team in providing ethics-approved, plain-English information about the study. This includes details about what data may be used and who it may be shared with, helping patients make a fully informed choice.

We honour patient preferences and recruit already respects the National Data Opt Out (NDOP), Type 1 and 2 opt-out codes and research opt-out codes as recommended by the NIHR. We would welcome standardised guidance for further system-wide consistency.

We also agree with the HRA that no change to current legislation is needed; maintaining confidentiality within existing governance and law is critical to maintaining public trust.

The role of healthcare professionals in research recruitment

We support the HRA’s view that clinicians should not act as gatekeepers to research. However, clinical judgement remains essential — especially when coded data alone may not reflect a patient’s full context. In cases where the clinician holds relevant knowledge, including information not captured in the record, they may determine that contact would be inappropriate.

Setting standards for digital platforms

We support the HRA’s position that digital platforms like Recruit and patient research registers should operate to consistent and transparent standards, and be approved through Research Ethics Committees (REC). A consistent framework will help to build trust and engagement and make it easier for healthcare teams and research organisations to work collaboratively. We’d welcome the chance to co-develop these standards with others in the sector — including better ways to manage opt-outs and prevent unnecessary amendments.

Recruit meets the proposed standards for digital intermediaries:

Data Security & Protection Toolkit (DSPT) annual completion
Clear workflow diagrams and legal documentation
Maintaining a balanced portfolio of research on the platform, including both interventional and observational designs, commercial and academic sponsorship, as well as research studies across multiple phases and a range of therapeutic areas
RECB approved protocols defining the GP-mediated contact pathway and clear and transparent statements on data stewardship
Patient and public involvement through dedicated advisory board and user and patient testing
Alignment with national policies including Digital Technology Assessment Criteria
Recruit is not a research database

Safeguards built into Recruit

Recruit complies with the common law duty of confidentiality and supports the HRA’s emphasis on trusted, GP-mediated contact. We use privacy enhancing technologies to only identify potentially eligible patients to their GP practice. Key safeguards to promote safety, proportionality and public confidence include:

Preserved legitimate relationship: GP practices with a legitimate relationship have full control over who can see patient identities
Processing boundaries: Data processing for patient identification is undertaken in the existing clinical system infrastructures and does not include bulk-data extracts to third parties.
Minimum-necessary use: Data access is strictly limited to what is required to assess for eligibility and contact the patient

Our clinical informatics specialists build targeted searches that reflect real-world clinical coding practices. This ensures inclusivity and precision, maximises diversity, and avoids excluding eligible patients due to incomplete or inconsistent records.

Optum enables healthcare providers to offer patients greater access to research that could benefit their health and care and contribute to advancing wider medical knowledge. In doing so, we help to put the HRA’s recommendations into practice – ensuring that the use of health information to identify and contact potential patients is lawful, proportionate and always centred on patient trust and choice. Together, we can make research more accessible, inclusive, and trusted — for everyone.

Looking ahead

The HRA’s report offers a clear and balanced framework for using patient data in research. We support its emphasis on transparency, ethical safeguards, and the role of clinicians in initiating contact.

GP-mediated models remain the most trusted approach, ensuring patients are informed by their care team and that consent is meaningful. Digital tools like Recruit can support this, provided they meet consistent standards for governance, ethics, and patient involvement.

We recommend continued collaboration across NHS, research bodies, and tech providers to:

Build public trust through clear communication
Align digital platforms with ethical and legal standards
Promote equitable access to research
Maintain clinician oversight without unnecessary gatekeeping

Optum is committed to supporting these efforts and contributing to practical, patient-centred solutions.