SPCRN
(Scottish Primary Care Research Network)
Welcome to SPCRN website. SPCRN was one of the first networks to be established in Scotland, and works closely with the PCRN in England and the topic-specific networks in Scotland as part of the UK Clinical Research Network Link to Networks
SPCRN Nodes
| Map | Node | Health Boards |
|---|---|---|
 |
East
South East West North East North |
NHS Tayside, NHS Fife
NHS Lothian, NHS Borders NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde, NHS Ayrshire & Arran, NHS Lanarkshire, NHS Forth Valley, NHS Dumfries & Galloway NHS Grampian, NHS Orkney, NHS Shetland NHS Highland, NHS Western Isles |
About SPCRN
SPCRN exists to increase the capacity for primary care research by developing an infrastructure to support research.
The overall aim of SPCRN is to "increase the amount of research relevant to patient care undertaken in a primary care setting".
SPCRN can help by:
- Providing advice on the practical aspects of conducting research in primary care
- Calculating the costs of involving primary care staff in research and arranging their reimbursement from the NHS support cost budget for eligibly funded studies
- Linking researchers and practices by recruiting health care professionals and practice staff to studies
- Providing practical assistance with recruitment of patients
- Trouble-shooting where recruitment becomes problematic
SPCRN operates over 5 regions, or "nodes", based in Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Inverness.
If you are a researcher who would like to use SPCRN, please read our researcher leaflet and Detailed Guidance for Researchers
If you would like to discuss any aspect of primary care research with the SPCRN team, please see our contacts page for the appopriate national or regional contact
Useful ISD sites
ISD has useful data on practice characteristics and GP contacts which are publicly available from their website.
General Practice - Workforce and Practice Population Statistics
Practice Team Information (PTI) Statistics and Analysis
General Practice - Quality & Outcomes Framework
National Projects Currently Recruiting
ASCEND: A randomised 2x2 factorial study of aspiring versus placebo, and of omega-3 fatty acid supplementation versus placebo, for primary prevention of cardiovascular events in people with diabetes
The Scottish Family Health Study (Generation Scotland)
Pathway 1: A study which will assess whether early initial treatment for hypertension with combination therapy confers more sustained blood pressure control than when patients start on sequential monotherpay followed by combination therpay (monotherpay vs dual therapy for initial treatment to hypertension)
Pathway 2: A study which will assess how best to treat high blood pressure in patients where a standard combination of three drugs has not been sufficient to achieve recommended targets (Optimal treatment of drug resistant hypertension)
Pathway 3: A study which will assess whether potassium sparing diuretics improve glucose tolerance in patients with hypertension and one other component of metabolic syndrome (Comparison of single and combination diuretics with low-rennin hypertension)
H1N1 in Pregnancy: A research project during the current swine flu (influenze H1N1) outbreak to learn more about the effects of swine flu and its treatments for both the mother and baby.
Psoriasis Care Pathway: A study to identift and examine key issues in patient perceptions of and satisfaction with the management of their psoriasis or psoriatic arthopathy.
SAIVMs - Self-assessed health stat eof adults with brain vascular malformations: Recruiting and following up a cohort of adults, resident in Scotland, who are newly diagnosed with an intracranial vascular malformation (IVM).
If you are interested in the any of the above studies and/or require further information, please email Jill Sutherland, Network Administrator
