Launch of national new primary care research centre
Document Actions
A major new centre promoting research into primary care has been created at Keele University with funding of £2.5m over five years from arc.
The Arthritis Research Campaign National Primary Care Centre at Keele will have a direct benefit on the thousands of people in the UK who suffer from painful joint and muscle problems.
Although those with the most severe forms of arthritis attend hospital specialists, this is only the tip of a very large iceberg. Around 20% of UK adults consult their GP about arthritis or a related musculoskeletal condition every year. Despite this, research into the most appropriate methods of investigation and treatment in primary care, which is carried out by physiotherapists and nurses as well as GPs, has attracted little funding and attention.
Medical director of arc, Professor Alan Silman, said: “At a time when the government policy is to shift care of patients with arthritis and joint and back problems from hospitals into primary care, it is vital that we look at the best ways of delivering this care to patients. The changing demographics of society – the population is getting older coupled with the growing problem of obesity – means that more and more people will develop osteoarthritis. The most important consequence of our obesity epidemic and poor levels of physical activity will be osteoarthritis of the knee, and finding ways for primary care to help patients prevent their symptoms, and offer early effective treatment for this common condition is essential,” he added.
The new centre will not only investigate the most effective treatments for people with musculoskeletal conditions but also test new ways of delivering these treatments in everyday clinical practice.
One of its top priority areas will be to tackle the problem of ensuring that people with arthritis stick to exercise regimes, in order to reduce their pain and maintain their ability to do everyday activities.
Other priorities will be to reduce depression in older osteoarthritis sufferers which is related to the chronic pain, and to treat back pain more effectively.
Research carried out at Keele and largely funded by arc has shown that simple measures such as exercise and physiotherapy can dramatically improve the symptoms of arthritis. But getting this evidence into the real world and into everyday practice, with the agreement and support of patients and clinicians, has always been difficult. This will be one of the new centre’s biggest challenges.