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  3. Alternative routes into clinical research: a guide for early career doctors
Practice Essentials

Alternative routes into clinical research: a guide for early career doctors

BMJ 2024; 385 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj-2023-076414 (Published 16 April 2024) Cite this as: BMJ 2024;385:e076414
  1. Phillip LR Nicolson, consultant haematologist and associate professor of cardiovascular science1 2 3,
  2. Martha Belete, registrar in anaesthetics4 5,
  3. Rebecca Hawes, clinical fellow in anaesthetics5 6,
  4. Nicole Fowler, haematology clinical research fellow7,
  5. Cheng Hock Toh, professor of haematology and consultant haematologist8 9
  1. 1Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences, University of Birmingham, UK
  2. 2Department of Haemostasis, Liaison Haematology and Transfusion, University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, Birmingham
  3. 3HaemSTAR, UK
  4. 4Department of Anaesthesia, Plymouth Hospitals NHS Trust, Plymouth, UK
  5. 5Research and Audit Federation of Trainees, UK
  6. 6Department of Anaesthesia, The Rotherham NHS Foundation Trust, Rotherham Hospital, Rotherham
  7. 7Department of Haematology, Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust, Treliske, Truro
  8. 8Liverpool University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Prescott Street, Liverpool
  9. 9Institute of Infection, Veterinary and Ecological Sciences, University of Liverpool
  1. Correspondence to P Nicolson, C H Toh p.nicolson{at}bham.ac.uk; c.h.toh{at}liverpool.ac.uk

Working in clinical research alongside clinical practice can make for a rewarding and worthwhile career.123 Building research into a clinical career starts with research training for early and mid-career doctors. Traditional research training typically involves a dedicated period within an integrated clinical academic training programme or as part of an externally funded MD or PhD degree. Informal training opportunities, such as journal clubs and principal investigator (PI)-mentorship are available (box 1), but in recent years several other initiatives have launched in the UK, meaning there are more ways to obtain research experience and embark on a career in clinical research.

Box 1

Examples of in-person and online research training opportunities

These are available either informally or formally, free of charge or paid, and via local employing hospital trusts, allied health organisations, royal colleges, or universities

Research training opportunities

  • Mentorship by PIs at local hospital

  • Taking on formal role as sub-investigator

  • Audit

  • Journal clubs

  • Trainee representation on regional/national NIHR specialty group

  • API Scheme: https://www.nihr.ac.uk/health-and-care-professionals/training/associate-principal-investigator-scheme.htm.

  • eLearning courses available at https://learn.nihr.ac.uk (free): Good clinical practice, fundamentals of clinical research delivery, informed consent, leadership, future of health, central portfolio management system.

  • eLearning courses available from the Royal College of Physicians. Research in Practice programme (free). www.rcplondon.ac.uk

  • eLearning courses available from the Medical Research Council (free). https://bygsystems.net/mrcrsc-lms/

  • eLearning courses available from Nature (both free and for variable cost via employing institution): many and varied including research integrity and publication ethics, persuasive grant writing, publishing a research paper. https://masterclasses.nature.com

  • University courses. Examples include novel clinical trial design in translational medicine from the University of Cambridge (https://advanceonline.cam.ac.uk/courses/) or introduction to randomised controlled trials in healthcare from the University of Birmingham (https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/university/colleges/mds/cpd/)

RETURN TO TEXT

This article outlines these formal but “non-traditional” routes available to early and mid-career doctors that can successfully increase research involvement and enable research-active careers.

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