Browse by author
Lookup NU author(s): Professor Anthony De SoyzaORCiD, Dr Gary Nestor
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0).
© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2025. Re-use permitted under CC BY. Published by BMJ Group. Objective: The purpose of this article is to share insights from the National Institute for Health and Care Research Clinical Research Network (NIHR CRN) in delivering research for Multiple Long Term Conditions (MLTC) and to highlight lessons of wider relevance across the research ecosystem. Key reflections: Designing health and care systems to be more responsive to the needs of people living with MLTC requires a considerable evidence base. When compared with research focused on a single disease area, research relating to MLTC raises unique considerations at the stages of planning, placing, and delivering research studies. Our article describes challenges associated with MLTC research outcomes and outlines different types of interventions to target MLTC, along with related research delivery considerations. Our article also raises important considerations for placing research in the most appropriate setting and highlights the vital role of robust feasibility studies, informed by the lived experience of patients and carers with MLTC, for ensuring that studies are conducted, recruited to, and completed in a timely and appropriate way. Conclusion: Increasing the evidence base for the prevention and management of MLTC is a necessity for our health and care system. This presents novel challenges that require collaboration between multiple stakeholders. The UK benefits from a unique research infrastructure, including support for the stages of planning and delivery of health and care research. As the health and care system moves towards bringing care closer to patients and service users, the appropriate selection of the health and care settings and research sites in which to deliver MLTC research, in addition to understanding and removing barriers to recruitment and participation for people with MLTCs, are important considerations to enable us to collectively respond to this challenge.
Author(s): De Soyza A, Goodwin VA, Roberts K, Masoli J, Mathews J, Wilding J, Nestor G, Bower P
Publication type: Article
Publication status: Published
Journal: BMJ Open
Year: 2025
Volume: 15
Issue: 9
Online publication date: 14/09/2025
Acceptance date: 26/06/2025
Date deposited: 01/10/2025
ISSN (print): 2044-6055
ISSN (electronic): 2044-6055
Publisher: BMJ Publishing Group
URL: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2024-096206
DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2024-096206
PubMed id: 40947303
Altmetrics provided by Altmetric
