It’s a star for research and development
June 13, 2018
Our organisation has achieved the Star rating for the excellent work in supporting a national stroke study.
The rating was awarded by the PLORAS (Predicting Language Outcome & Recovery after Stroke) research team for the outstanding work that the research and development team (R&D) have been doing to support the study.
PLORAS is a national study which is carried out at the University College London and there are 59 clinical research network sites that are currently taking part in this trial. The study looks into the speech recovery in stroke patients and in particular how long it takes and how much better they can get.
Our organisation joined this study in 2014 and to date we are one of the highest recruiters.
Stroke Research Nurse, Anne Hayes, said: “Since joining the PLORAS study four years ago, we have recruited around 70 patients to participate in the research, exceeding our initial target of 35. We are delighted to learn that we are a PLORAS Star site. It is a very special recognition for the work that we have been doing to support the trial.
“As part of our role we ensure that patients are fully informed about the trial and the options they have. For patients that do not wish to travel to London, the trial offers the option to use the MRIs they had at Sandwell. However, for those patients that would like the opportunity to travel to London, we complete the safety screening questionnaire thoroughly and always advise the trial centre if we have any queries or concerns.
“Every year, we treat approximately 600 stroke patients, and we have seen how significantly their lives have been changed as a result of their stroke. By facilitating this type of research, we truly believe that clinicians will be better equipped to help their patients through their recovery from stroke.
“At the moment, we recruit patients for another five stroke studies, which cover many aspects of the stroke pathway. We are also excited that we will soon open another three studies which span from looking at the progress of silent mini strokes through to testing a new clot busting treatment”.
In the letter that was sent to the team, Professor Cathy Price, PLORAS Chief Investigator, wrote: “We have found your site to be exceptionally engaged and supportive over the years, in addition to being one of our highest recruiters.”
Dr Sissi Ispoglou, Speciality Lead for Stroke and Principal Investigator for this study said: “This achievement wouldn’t have been possible without the true integration of research into the clinical pathway, the support of everyone on the stroke wards and the hard work of Anne Hayes, Rachel Evans and everyone at R&D”
The PLORAS study continues to recruit participants until 2022 and has recruited more than 1,500 patients across the country.