Research

Acute medicine is one of the newest medical specialities and this presents unique opportunities for new, original and forward-thinking research. The nature of Acute medicine invites research not only in the identification, diagnosis and treatment of the acutely unwell medical patient, but in patient safety, quality improvement, service delivery and organisation and education.

The Research Committee is integral to the Society’s mission, through the facilitation and co-ordination of collaborative research and the collection of data relevant to acute patient care. The Research Committee also supports the development of evidence-based standards for acute care.

SAM supports research in a number of different ways:

• Research done directly through the Research Committee
• Research done in conjunction with other bodies, including the Royal Colleges.
• Representation on national bodies involved in the funding and regulation of research
• Providing opportunities for the presentation and publication of research
• Providing opportunities for networking and knowledge sharing

Major achievements have so far included:

• Setting clinical standards for Acute Medical care
• Supporting the development of the National Early Warning Score
• Advocating for the introduction of longer periods of shadowing and induction of junior doctors
• Understanding the educational needs of AMU nurses
• Understanding the complexity and needs of acute medical patients

Current Projects:

• Society for Acute Medicine Benchmarking Audit (SAMBA)
• Variability in care of patients with suspected pulmonary embolism
• Improving care for young adults and adolescent patients
• Investigating the appropriateness of tools for estimating nursing workload in the acute setting

How to Get Involved:

• Join up for SAMBA
• Get involved in the Acute Medicine Awareness Week
• Become a member of the Research Group
• Meetings of the Research Group are open to all members of SAM. For more details, contact Louella Vaughan via communications@acutemedicine.org.uk

Past research/work supported by SAM:

• Bell D, Lambourne A, Percival F, Laverty AA, Ward DK. Consultant input in acute medical admissions and patient outcomes in hospitals in England: a multivariate analysis. PLoS One. 2013 Apr 17;8(4):e61476. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0061476.
• Royal College of Physicians (2012) National Early Warning Score (NEWS): Standardising the assessment of acute illness severity in the NHS Report of a working party. London: RCP
• West Midlands Quality Review Service and the Society for Acute Medicine (2012) Quality standards for acute medical units WMQRS/SAM
• Royal College of Physicians and the Society for Acute Medicine (2012) Delivering a 12-hour, 7-day consultant presence on the acute medical unit Acute Care Toolkit 4 London: RCP
• Ward D, Murch N, Agarwal G, Bell D. A multi-centre survey of inpatient pharmacological management strategies for alcohol withdrawal. QJM. 2009 Nov;102(11):773-80. doi: 10.1093/qjmed/hcp116. Epub 2009 Aug 20.
• Skene H, Ward D. SAM Acute Medicine Trainees Skills Survey 2009. Acute Med. 2009;8(1):39-42.
• Bell D, Skene H, Jones M, Vaughan L A guide to the acute medical unit. Br J Hosp Med (Lond). 2008 Jul;69(7):M107-9.
• Ward D, Potter J, Ingham J, Percival F, Bell D. Acute medical care. The right person, in the right setting–first time: how does practice match the report recommendations? Clin Med. 2009 Dec;9(6):553-6.

Other research include:

• Scott, I.; Vaughan, L., Bell, D (2009) Effectiveness of acute medical units in hospitals: a systematic review International Journal for Quality in Health Care; Volume 21, Number 6: pp. 397 –407

More resources are available under our document library section.