Mr Benjamin Fletcher BSc, MPH

 

Research Associate

Primary Care Clinical Sciences

Contact details

Telephone +44 (0)121 414 4395

Fax +44 (0)121 414 6571

Email b.r.fletcher@bham.ac.uk

Primary Care Clinical Sciences
Health and Population Sciences
College of Medical and Dental Sciences
University of Birmingham
Edgbaston
Birmingham, B15 2TT

About

Ben joined Primary Care Clinical Sciences in October 2010 as a Research Associate on a National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Research Methods Fellowship. The focus of the fellowship is on improving recruitment to controlled trials in primary care. A further aim of the project is to develop novel methodologies for use in the primary care research setting

Qualifications

  • Masters in Public Health, University of Birmingham, 2011
  • Awarded the Thomas McKeown prize for best student project.
  • BSc in Biological Sciences, Lancaster University, 2004

Biography

Ben has a background in biological sciences, and has experience of working in the pharmaceutical industry as well as academia. Shortly after graduating from Lancaster University, he took up a post as research technician in the School of Biosciences (University of Birmingham), investigating marine biofiouling. In 2009, he made the move to working in the School of Immunology investigating immunotherapy. He took up a post in Primary Care in 2010 to work on an NIHR Research Methods Fellowship. The NIHR Research Methods Programme is designed to support the development of individuals with expertise in research methods including medical statistics, health economics, clinical trial design, operational research and modelling.

His work in Primary Care focuses on recruitment to trials and methods of evidence synthesis. He has been involved in several systematic reviews across a wide range of subjects. He is particularly interested in research methods that fall between the qualitative and quantitative paradigms.

Teaching

 

Research

Research themes

 Research methodology, Cancer Screening, Epidemiology

Research activity

Systematic reviews:

  • Developing qualitative and quantitative synthesis methods.
  • Improving recruitment to randomised controlled trials in primary care, with a focus on the recruiting clinicians.
  • Effectiveness of wound edge protectors in reducing surgical site infection
  • Review of primary care interventions to increase the uptake of cancer screening. NHS
  • Cancer Screening Programmes (2010-2011)

Other:

  • Q study to assess GPs attitudes to recruiting to controlled trials.

Publications

Fletcher B, Gheorghe A, Moore D, Wilson S, Damery S. Improving the recruitment activity of clinicians in randomised controlled trials - a systematic review. BMJ Open:2 e000496 (2012)

Gheorghe A, Calvert M, Pinkney T, Fletcher B, Youssef H, Morton D, Wilson S. Systematic review of the clinical effectiveness of wound-edge protection devices in reducing surgical site infection in patients undergoing open abdominal surgery. Annals of Surgery; In press (2011)

Park D, Weinman CJ, Finlay JA, Fletcher BR, Paik MY, Sundaram HS, Dimitriou MD, Sohn KE, Callow ME, Callow JA, Handlin DL, Willis CL, Fischer DA, Kramer EJ, Ober CK. Amphiphilic surface active triblock copolymers with mixed hydrophobic and hydrophilic side chains for tuned marine fouling-release properties. Langmuir: 26 9772-9781 (2010)

Finlay JA, Fletcher BR, Callow ME, Callow JA. Effect of background colour on growth and adhesion strength of Ulva sporelings. Biofouling: 24 219-225 (2008)

Weinman CJ, Finlay JA, Park D, Paik MY, Krishnan S, Fletcher BR, Callow ME, Callow JA, Handlin DL, Willis CL, Fisher DA, Sohn KE, Kramer EJ, Ober CK. Antifouling ABC triblock copolymers with grafted functionality. Polymer Materials Science Engineering Preprints: 98 639-641 (2008)

Pinkney TD, McCall J, Dumville JC, Hawkins WJ, Edwards FJ, Gheorghe A, Bartlett DC, Fletcher BR, Calvert MJ. Wound protectors for preventing surgical site infection in abdominal surgery. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews Protocol(Ongoing).

Damery S, Fletcher B, Clements A, Villain P, Wilson S. Systematic review of evidence on effectiveness of interventions, offered through or directed towards primary care providers, on uptakes in cancer screening and in HPV testing. Report for NHS Cancer Screening Programmes

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