South London research nurse on working in primary care
CRN South London's Clinical Research Nurse Jayshireen Singh highlights her passion for primary care research and how a recent conference showed how the specialty is making a difference in people's lives.
Primary care is a unique setting which forms the bedrock of healthcare in this country. Most people access healthcare services in primary care settings, which makes it an ideal sector for delivering research.
I have ten years of experience in primary care research as a nurse. Working in nursing allows us to positively impact people's lives by promoting healthier lifestyles, disease diagnosis and prevention at an early stage, and managing long-term conditions such as diabetes and hypertension.
I had the opportunity to attend the Primary Care and Public Health Conference in Birmingham this year with my colleague, Gladys Emmanuel. The theme for the conference was “ACCESS." How can we improve access to general practice and primary care?
The conference brought together GPs, GP trainees, managers, community nurses, midwives, Allied Health Professionals (podiatrists, physiotherapists, dietitians, etc.) and other professionals working in primary care, community care, and public and prison health.
The conference was truly unique in its multidisciplinary approach. Attendees could choose from 20 free clinical Continuous Professional Development conference programmes whilst networking with colleagues, professional and advisory bodies, and leading industry suppliers. There was an impressive speaker lineup of profiles experts, pioneers and front-line practitioners who offered us the latest in guidance, innovations and examples of best practices.
This conference provided an opportunity to reflect on and discuss current issues in primary care teaching with multidisciplinary learning among GPs, primary and community practitioners. Sharing best practices, research evidence, and learning from the speakers translates into everyday practice and helps us offer our patients the best care and treatment options. Moreover, listening to common issues and frustrations experienced by our clinical colleagues and celebrating our successes in the latest research development made us feel that we were not alone. It was a proud moment to hear about one of the cardiovascular studies, the TIME study, which the primary care team had the opportunity to deliver in south London.
Primary care research demonstrated its amazing power and promise during the pandemic when it shaped standards of care and saved people's lives. There are challenges, especially as primary care providers are extremely busy and require a fair bit of support to adopt research studies within their practice.
Learn more about the Primary Care and Public Health Conference on the organiser's website.
The views and opinions expressed in this blog are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the NIHR or the Department of Health and Social Care.
