The Cluster Randomised Trial and beyond: achievements and future research- Part 4

Kerry Hood (College of Biomedical & Life Sciences, University of Cardiff)
Randomised Trials & Routine GP Data: the promise, the reality and the potential

RCTs have become more expensive and challenging to undertake and there are concerns about the co-intervention effects of proactive data collection processes and challenges of loss to follow up. The pursuit in the NHS of single electronic records has been paired with the promise of capturing large amounts of data on participants in trials from what is collected during their usual contacts with the health service. Parallel centralised approaches to records have also been developed in other sectors. This talk will use examples from major trials over the last 10 years, including STAR and the Building Blocks trial of the Family Nurse Partnership in England, to explore the practical and scientific challenges of using routine data and consider what might become more possible in the future.