At Lea Vale Medical Group we have an active and vibrant research unit. This is headed by Dr Steve Gillam with the help of Research Nurse Fiona Costello and the research administrator Katy Galec.

So what is research?

There are many different types of research from observational surveys to clinical trials involving new and novel medications. These are often comparing best-known standard therapies with newer therapies to see if they are more effective or cause fewer side effects.

People use research to try and find the causes of diseases and to find better treatments and services for those diseases. Research is particularly important in Primary care as we can see the importance and effects of different treatments in a real setting, not the artificial setting of hospitals or in-patient research units.

We are particularly interested in important conditions affecting patients in Primary Care (General Practice). The research areas are very varied depending on what is new, has great potential or areas where research is especially needed.

Research at Lea Vale Medical Group

We are affiliated to UKPCRN. The UK Clinical Research Network was established to support clinical research and to facilitate the conduct of trials and other well-designed studies across the UK. As part of the UK Clinical Research Collaboration, it works towards the development of a world class infrastructure to support clinical research in the UK.

We also receive some of our funding from our local Primary Care Research Network, East of England (PCRN-EoE). This supports some of the non-commercial trials, as well as commercial trials we perform.