WASHINGTON — One way to develop a research project in family medicine would be to contact a local network that keeps an inventory of clinical research projects taking place in primary care, Dr. Donya Powers said at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Family Physicians.
“It's hard for any one family doctor to have enough cases to say enough statistically about them,” said Dr. Powers of Brown University, Providence, R.I. Local research networks often have ongoing projects that are already funded but need more patients, she added.
The Federation of Practice-Based Research Networks (FPBRN) is an umbrella organization that addresses national issues faced by the networks, including rules related to consent and Institutional Review Board approval.
Patient consent and IRB approval are crucial if a study involves a patient intervention, although the rules of a quality improvement study may be more lenient than the rules for a study sponsored by a drug company, Dr. Powers explained.
For more information, visit the FPBRN Web site, which can been accessed through the AAFP site: www.aafp.org/online/en/home/clinical/research/fpbrn.html