Glossary of Terms

Biotechnology	Technology that uses biological processes to make a product, such as a medicine.
Clinical Research	Ways to test new treatments or ways of delivering care. Involves people and/or their samples or data.
Clinical Research Network	As part of the National Institute for Health Research, CRN helps to provide the infrastructure that allows high-quality clinical research to take place in the NHS, so that patients can benefit from new and better treatments, and we can learn how to improve NHS healthcare for the future.
Clinical Research Network West Midlands CRN:WM	The three CLRNs in West Midlands, PCRN Central England and the Topic Specific Networks have merged into a single integrated Network for West Midlands, the Clinical Research Network West Midlands. This transition is being done to achieve a more streamlined research network structure.
Flexibility and Sustainability Funding	A funding stream introduced by the Department of Health in order to attract, develop and retain the research workforce necessary for delivering high quality health research.
Industry Research	The term used to mean clinical trials and studies that are paid for and run by pharmaceutical and medical technology companies. These companies are often called drug companies.
INVOLVE	An advisory group funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) which works to ensure that research is relevant to the whole population and provides advice and information for lay people wishing to become involved in health research.
Medical Technology	Technology used to diagnose, monitor or treat disease or conditions in humans.
NIHR - National Institute for Health Research	An organisation set up by the Department of Health to ‘create a health research system in which the NHS supports outstanding individuals, working in world class facilities, conducting leading edge research focused on the needs of patients and the public’.
NIHR Clinical Research Network Coordinating Centre	Supports and manages the networks in addition to collaborating with key partners to improve the clinical research environment as a whole.
NIHR CRN CC	National Institute for Health Research Clinical Research Network Coordinating Centre.
NIHR Portfolio	A national database of studies considered to be well-planned and of relevance to the NHS. All the studies have been reviewed by experts.
Patient and Public Involvement	Consulting the public and patients on their opinions regarding research and finding out what is relevant to them. This makes research more feasible, more acceptable and people are more likely to take part. There are many different ways in which people can get involved and different levels of involvement.
Pharmaceutical Company	Also known as a drug company. A company that makes and sells drugs for use as medicines.
PPI	Patient and Public Involvement; also known as PCPIE.
Primary Care	The work of healthcare staff who act as a first point of consultation for patients. For example, your GP, dentist or pharmacist.
Primary Care Research Site Incentive	A scheme that supports primary care sites and helps them to take part in research.
Research	The way we discover new knowledge.
SSC - Service Support Costs	Available to NHS primary healthcare staff to reimburse the time they spend taking part in research.
UKCRN	United Kingdom Clinical Research Network.
United Kingdom Clinical Research Network	Comprises the four research networks across the UK funded by the Health Departments. These are: the National Institute for Health Research (England), the Scottish Clinical Research Networks (Scotland), the Northern Ireland Clinical Research Network (Northern Ireland) and Clinical Research Collaboration Cymru ( Wales).
UKCRC	United Kingdom Clinical Research Collaboration.
United Kingdom Clinical Research Collaboration	An organisation that ‘brings together the NHS, research funders, industry, regulatory bodies, Royal Colleges, patient groups and academia in a UK-wide environment that facilitates and promotes high quality clinical research for the benefit of patients.’ - UKCRC website.
United Kingdom Clinical Trials Gateway	The UK Clinical Trials Gateway provides easy to understand information about clinical research trials running in the UK and gives you as well as others access to a large range of information about these trials.