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Urgent Public Health Studies - Associate PI Scheme FAQs

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Published: 12 November 2020

Version: 4.0 May 2021

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  1. Where can I get more information about the Associate PI Scheme?

    There is an overview of the Associate PI scheme, a list of registered studies and online forms for completion on the NIHR website. If you have any questions about the registration process or eligibility of a study or applicant please contact the NIHR Associate PI Scheme Team.
  2. Who is eligible to be an Associate PI?

    The Scheme is open to junior doctors, staff nurses and allied health professionals (including e.g. physiotherapistsanddieticians) as well as other doctors who are not expressed in research but wish to gain skills and experience in participatinginNIHR Portfolio research. We encourage members of all these groups to take part.

    If research is part of your core role (e.g. you are a research nurse, academic clinical lecturer or fellow), you would be unlikely to benefit from the Scheme and would not be eligible to take part. If a research nurse/ACL/ACF would gain provable additional skills from working on a study outside their funded capacity/job role, then they may be eligible to register for the Associate PI Scheme. Enrolment in these cases will be made on an individual basis.

    Students are not eligible to be Associate PIs, because the Scheme requires significant input over at least six months and this is not compatible with most student placements. Students must qualify before becoming eligible to join the Scheme. We strongly encourage students to become involved in clinical research in other capacities in a way that fits with their training.

  3. Do I need to complete GCP training?

    Yes, it is mandatory that each Associate PI who registers for the scheme must complete GCP training.
  4. Do I have to prospectively register for the Associate PI Scheme?

    Yes, it is important that each Associate PI registers for the scheme when they start in their role at a site. You may wish to register ahead of moving to a site but it is imperative that you discuss this with the local PI to ensure that there is not already an Associate PI that wishes to continue in the role. The local PI will be informed of any registrations at the site for their study so it is very important that you discuss this with them before registering.
  5. Can there be more than one Associate PI at a site?

    Since the Urgent Public Health trials involve several specialties or departments at a site, it is permissible for there to be more than one Associate PIs at a site simultaneously, providing they are from different pre-approved specialties. For more information, please contact associatepischeme@nihr.ac.uk.
  6. My Trust has several sites which are all involved in the study and all recruit patients. Can there be more than one Associate PI across the Trust?

    Each independent site is eligible to have its own Associate PI or group of Associate PIs. As per HRA guidelines each ‘independent operating site should have a PI which translates to eligibility for the  Associate PI scheme.
  7. Can I transfer from one site to another and continue as an Associate PI?

    We would encourage Associate PIs to continue being part of the scheme as they move around to different rotations/sites. Due to the size of the Urgent Public Health studies, an Associate PI status can be transferable between sites (maximum two) - each time period at each site is regarded as the same placement and the time periods will be combined. For example, if someone is based at a hospital in Huddersfield  for four months if they then move to a different hospital i.e Leeds for three months, they would be eligible to be an Associate PI as long as they are still working on the same trial they were working before.
  8. I am a staff nurse/physiotherapist/dietician/AHP. Can I apply to be an Associate PI?

    Yes, the scheme is open to junior doctors, staff nurses and allied health professionals. We encourage members of all of these groups to take part.
  9. I am a research nurse. Can I become an Associate PI?

    The Associate PI Scheme is aimed at clinical staff who wish to gain skills and experience in participating in NIHR Portfolio research and to provide them with formal recognition of the contribution they have made over and above the standard expectations of their role. Staff whose core role already includes research (e.g. research nurses) are therefore unlikely to benefit from the scheme. If a research nurse is working on the study in their funded capacity/job role then they would not be eligible to register for the Associate PI Scheme.
  10. I am an academic clinical lecturer. Can I become an Associate PI?

    The Associate PI Scheme is aimed at clinical staff who wish to gain skills and experience in participating in NIHR Portfolio research and to provide them with formal recognition of the contribution they have made over and above the standard expectations of their role. Academic clinical lecturers whose core role already includes research are therefore unlikely to benefit from the scheme. If a clinical lecturer is working on a study in their funded capacity/job role then they would not be eligible to register for the Associate PI Scheme. If it can be demonstrated that the work the clinical lecturer does on delivering the study is in addition to their core activities then enrollment of such staff will be considered on a case by case basis.
  11. I am a medical student. Can I become an Associate PI?

    No, there are several reasons why medical students are not eligible to be an Associate PI. Firstly, the scheme is aimed at developing PIs of the future. Medical students have many years of being able to take part in research before they can become PIs and will have opportunities to be an Associate PI when they are qualified doctors. Secondly, the scheme requires significant input over at least six months and this is not compatible with the majority of medical student placements. We strongly encourage medical students to become involved in clinical research and there are many roles that you could fulfil and many skills that you can learn or enhance.
  12. Do I need to fill in every box on the Associate PI checklist?

    The checklist is structured with ‘core activities’ and ‘additional activities’. Each of the core activities is mandatory in order to receive Associate PI status. The exception to this rule, specific to the RECOVERY trial, is the section on the delegation log as several sites are not utilising one in their delivery of the trial.
  13. What do I do with my completed checklist?

    Towards the end of a rotation or time period as an Associate PI, the Associate PI applicant should meet with the local PI (and research nurse) in order to review the checklist document and if completed satisfactorily, the PI should sign the checklist. The Associate PI applicant should also sign and the completed document should then be forwarded to the CTU representative for them to sign it off. Once the checklist has been fully signed off by all parties, it should be sent through to the NIHR Associate PI Scheme Team who will then issue you with a certificate.
  14. What recognition do I receive for being an Associate PI?

    Once your checklist has been checked for completeness and forwarded to the NIHR Associate PI Scheme Team, you will be sent an NIHR-endorsed certificate to indicate the study, time period and centre at which you were an Associate PI. The study teams taking part in the Associate PI Scheme have agreed that all Associate PIs will be recognised publication(s) from the study. The exact details of this should be included in the study protocol. Although a publication is a tangible output, of more significance are the enhanced skills and understanding around the delivery of NIHR Portfolio research which you will gain through taking part in this scheme.