Customer stories
Meet the Surrey practice empowering patients to take part in clinical research
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The Grove Medical Centre in Egham, Surrey is committed to enhancing healthcare by providing their patients with the opportunity to participate in clinical trials. To achieve this they have fully embraced our Recruit tool, which is available to use in EMIS Web®.
We spoke with Lesley Cushen, Operations Manager at The Grove, about her team's experience using Recruit, which allows practices to easily identify and connect with patients who may be eligible to take part in clinical trials. The Grove first started using the platform last year after their initial activation within EMIS Web, a process Lesley describes as ‘literally a two-minute job’.
Identifying and contacting patients
After the set up was complete, the practice then received an email each time a new trial was added to the platform. Lesley shared that her team collectively decided to make all trials available to their patients and empower them to decide for themselves if they’d like to take part.
Some patients if they thought they could be part of a trial to help other people with the condition they have in the future, they’d love to help with something like that. I just think it's the patient’s choice – we should let them decide whether they want to participate or not.”
Since activation, the practice has used Recruit for multiple trials, following the simple steps to accept new studies and share them with potentially eligible patients in just a few clicks. Lesley explained that the instructions provided were clear and concise, making the process incredibly simple. "There's very little you have to do," she added.
Embedding clinical research at the heart of patient care
This is the first time The Grove have been involved in clinical research within primary care. “We're just brand new to it – it’s the first time we've used anything like this”, Lesley said. As patients continue to take an active role in their healthcare, and show growing interest in innovative treatment methods, Lesley sees this as an ideal time to offer this service to patients.
We’ve had patients who have advised us they are part of a clinical research, but that's only instigated when they've been under hospital treatment or something similar. It’s just highlighted that people do have conditions where trials, in the long run, could help.”
As Recruit is embedded within EMIS Web, patient identification happens at source within the clinical system, supporting safe and secure data handling. This is a feature that reassured Lesley when contacting patients. “There’s no data sharing until the patient gives their consent, so from our point of view, we’re just giving you the option.”
Supporting the health of future generations
The Grove’s approach to supporting clinical research aligns with government aspirations outlined in the 2021 policy paper ‘Saving and Improving Lives: The Future of UK Clinical Research Delivery’. There is an onus to ‘ensure all patients, their families and their carers are empowered to directly and proactively explore research opportunities and to make informed decisions about participating in the research that is of relevance to them’.
By entrusting this decision-making power to its patients, The Grove is at the forefront of a new way of working when it comes to supporting vital trials in primary care. What’s more, in the current climate of pressured workloads, Recruit is making it easy for healthcare teams to contribute to the health of future patients across the UK and the wider world.
It couldn’t have been easier really, it's so simple.”
Recruit is available to all EMIS Web practices in England. To activate today, follow our step-by-step guide here.