Summary
A total of 33 roles will support the delivery of research in a range of settings and specialty areas of health and care.
Two Greater Manchester GPs have been appointed by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) North West Regional Research Delivery Network (NW RRDN) to support the delivery of research in health and care settings.
Dr Imran Ghafoor is a GP trainer at Peterloo Medical Centre in Middleton, and has been appointed Primary Care Settings Lead. He has a strong passion for research in the field of general practice since becoming research-active during the COVID-19 pandemic.
He has been involved in numerous commercial and non-commercial studies and is passionate about collaborating with colleagues to foster the growth of commercial research in primary care. He firmly believes that research should be accessible to all patients within the primary care setting.
Dr Omair Razzaq has been appointed General Practice Specialty Lead. A GP partner at the research-active Ashton Medical Group in Tameside, he is committed to offering patients access to high-quality portfolio and commercial studies. He is passionate about integrating research into routine practice, mentoring colleagues and providing more opportunities to all patients.
The Regional Research Specialty and Setting Leads (RSSLs) will provide leadership and advice, support research delivery, and participate in regional or national projects relating to Specialty or Setting capacity, capability and accessibility for research delivery.
The RSSLs provide the vital link between the regional, geographically-based networks (RRDNs) and national networks of expertise which is essential to the success of the RDN.
The NW RRDN has appointed 29 Specialty Leads, with each covering an area of expertise, such as ‘ageing’, ‘children’, ‘mental health’ and in Dr Razzaq’s case, ‘general practice’. In addition, there are four roles to support the settings of hospitals, community-based, residential care, and primary care (Dr Ghafoor).
As well as the designated leads, the NW RRDN will continue to support pharmacy, ophthalmology, audiology, and dental colleagues by signposting and developing capacity for NIHR research delivery.
More information about clinical research and the work of NIHR NW RRDN can be found on the PCB website.
