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McGill Primary Health Care Research Network (PBRN)

Research from practice, for practice

The McGill Primary Health Care Research Network is a practice-based research network (PBRN) that brings together researchers from the McGill Department of Family Medicine with primary care practitioners from member

Mission

In partnership with primary health care organizations and individual members (clinicians, managers, patients, and researchers), the McGill Primary Health Care Research Network will produce and apply research knowledge from and for clinical practice to improve patient care, in partnership with primary health care organizations and individual members (clinicians, managers, patients, and researchers) using a participatory research approach.

Membership

In accordance with the multi-disciplinary nature of primary health care, the Network integrates nurses, nurse practitioners, community pharmacists, family physicians, social workers, and allied health professionals such as occupational/physical therapists, and psychologists. Member organizations include Family Medicine Units (FMUs), integrated academic network clinics (CRIU), Family Medicine Groups (FMGs), local community service centers (CLSC), and any other clinical setting providing primary care.

Purpose

Using a participatory approach the Network:
• produces culturally and logistically appropriate research to improve practice;
• recruits participants to projects and intervention studies;
• builds research capacity of organizational and individual network members;
• cumulates partnership synergy to increase the quality of research outcomes overtime;
• sustains practice improvements beyond research time frames;
• generates new unanticipated projects and research activities.

Background

The McGill Primary Health Care Research Network was developed by the Research Division of the Department of Family Medicine and currently collaborates with various research groups. This network is one of four practice-based research networks (one for each department of family medicine), which make up the Quebec Knowledge Network ‘Réseau-1 Québec’. The Network is funded by the FRSQ (Fonds de recherche du Québec - Santé).

The importance of our research

Given the priorities and research interests expressed by clinicians in the Department of Family Medicine, the McGill Primary Health Care Research Network has chosen ‘patients with complex care needs’ as its main research topic. This topic is particularly important due to lack of scientific knowledge; studies tend to focus on one chronic disease rather than on patients with complex needs. For example, there is a lack of scientific evidence to produce appropriate clinical practice guidelines for these patients.