The Lincolnshire Poacher Study

The Lincolnshire Poacher study has now closed for recruitment.

It is a randomised controlled trial being run across Lincolnshire led by Professor Jervoise Andreyev, Consultant in Gastroenterology at Lincoln County Hospital in collaboration with the Research Department of Lincolnshire Community Health Services NHS Trust, supported by University of Lincoln & Hull Health Trials Unit. Follow the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) website link for more information or contact lhnt.team.research@nhs.net.

The purpose of the study is to see if nurse-led clinics are more cost effective for the management of Irritable bowel syndrome. Patients with new symptoms of diarrhoea who consult a primary care practitioner will be informed about the study. If they are interested, their details will be passed with consent to the poacher research nurses.

Eligible participants are randomly assigned to either ‘usual’ care with their GP following NICE guidelines, or overseen by the nurse-led arm. Recruits in both sectors are required to fill in various health questionnaires and give some basic details about themselves. Along with completing a monthly cost diary for 1 year; these are then administered again for comparison of symptoms and quality of life to baseline. Additional tests are booked for those allocated to nurse care following an algorithm.