Southern Alberta Primary Care Research Network (SAPCReN)
SAPCReN is a practice-based research network founded in 2007 by Dr. Neil Drummond. The network brings together over 300 members who are interested in primary care research, including clinicians and researchers who work collaboratively to address topics that are timely and important to primary care practice. SAPCReN and its staff are hosted in the Department of Family Medicine at the University of Calgary.
SAPCReN offers different ways for its members to learn about and become involved in research, such as through our monthly SAPCReN Scoop newsletter and lunch visits to primary care clinics in Calgary and southern Alberta. Our research team can also help to answer research-related questions and offer support for some research tasks, such as study protocol review, methodological advice, research ethics submissions, analysis and manuscript review.
Family physicians and nurse practitioners are also invited to join the Canadian Primary Care Sentinel Surveillance Network (CPCSSN), the largest pan-Canadian repository of de-identified data from primary care electronic medical records (EMRs). These data are used for health research, disease surveillance, and quality improvement. CPCSSN ‘sentinels’ also receive web-based reports about their patient panels. Learn more about CPCSSN here!
Canadian Primary Care Sentinel Surveillance Network (CPCSSN)
CPCSSN is a collaboration of many practice-based research and learning networks across Canada, including SAPCReN. CPCSSN extracts, cleans and processes de-identified data from the electronic medical records (EMRs) of over 1200 participating family physicians and nurse practitioners. These data are made available for primary care research, disease surveillance and quality improvement. You can learn more about CPCSSN here. To find out if you are eligible to participate, please contact SAPCReN.
Participate in Research
Whether you’re a ‘research-curious’ primary care provider or an experienced researcher interested in primary care topics, becoming a SAPCReN member is easy and will provide you with a network of others interested in growing primary care research capacity and knowledge.
Once a member, you’ll have access to the SAPCReN Scoop. This monthly newsletter highlights various opportunities to participate in research studies, join a study team, or sign-up for a webinar to build your research skills.
Even a small contribution is meaningful for advancing primary care research and building robust evidence to support primary care practices and care delivery.