Lead Research Nurse

Job overview

The experienced Lead Research Nurse will play a key role in the organisation supporting the Head of Research, Audit and Development in the effective management of clinical research within the Trust.  Central to the role are recruitment, education and monitoring of patients entering clinical research projects, particularly in orthopaedics.  Working closely with other members of the team, the post holder will support patients who choose to participate in clinical research by providing advice, information and acting as the patients’ advocate.  The post holder will take responsibility for the co-ordination and management of a clinical research portfolio, collaborating with the key personnel to ensure continued care and support for patients involved in clinical research.  The post holder will be required to undertake research nurse led clinics for patients.  The post holder will aim to improve patient recruitment into research projects, ensure adherence to research legislation, policy and guidelines and facilitate overall improvements in the care of research participants and the quality of research data collected.

The opportunity to undertake personal research projects or further study, in consultation with the lead medical investigator, is also encouraged.

Main duties of the job

To assess and evaluate the progress of on-going clinical trials and research undertaken in the trust, maintaining an accurate account of the status of the projects and to regularly update the department on the status.

• To assist with the organisation and implementation of clinical trials and observational studies in orthopaedics and liaising closely with the team to facilitate a co-ordinated approach to patient care.
• To ensure that proposed research projects for which the post-holder has responsibility are registered, reviewed and approved by the Trust’s R&D Department and Research Ethics Committee (REC) prior to commencement and that updates and amendments are reported and approved in a timely fashion.
• To liaise with members of the team to promote and oversee the appropriate referral and recruitment of patients to research projects within the unit for which the post holder has designated responsibility.
• To ensure that all ICH GCP required documentation is kept in a clearly trackable system and is stored in an appropriate manner for the appropriate length of time.
• To ensure that accrual to NIHR portfolio studies is reported regularly.
• To establish and maintain good channels of communication within the research team, with other departments in the Trust and with other relevant organisations including collaborators, non-commercial bodies and pharmaceutical sponsors.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

The post holder will directly manage a diverse team of research nurses, data managers, clinical research practitioners and health care technicians, assisting them to develop their clinical research skills through education and training. Further responsibility will include monitoring and raising the standard of nursing input with the team.