Research and Development (Hansard, 25 May 1993)

§ Dr. Mawhinney

We have decided to establish a university based research and development centre in the field of primary health care. The increasing importance of this sector means that it is now opportune to develop a capacity to carry out long-term high quality research and development. The delivery of primary care is vital both to the health and well-being of the population and to the effective and efficient delivery of health care services and, increasingly, innovative forms of service delivery and new initiatives in care and treatment are emerging within this sector. Primary care leads the demand for a range of services and, at the present time, is especially significant in inner cities in general and in London in particular. In the coming years, primary care will continue to be a source of exciting developments for the health service.

The establishment of a dedicated long-term research centre will, ensure that these developments are linked to research-based information, while taking into account likely changes in organisation and delivery of care. Both primary care and the programme of research will be defined broadly, to take into account not only the general medical service and general practice but also the flow of patients between primary and secondary care and the nature of the interface between the sectors.

The centre will be established by selective competitive tender from universities in England and Wales. This process will be led by Professor Michael Peckham, the director of research and development. A key consideration in selecting the successful bid will be the extent to which universities show that they can harnesss a significant contribution to this research field from other funders, including the private sector. Advertisements, and letters to universities inviting expressions of interest in tendering for the centre, will be published shortly.