Evidence-based practice is encouraged throughout medicine and related professions in order to ensure the treatments and processes we use are sound. Research provides the evidence. Involvement in research can be at various levels. Every health professional should be able to use research; in other words, find and critically appraise the work of others and decide whether it provides enough evidence to change practice. To achieve this some level of research training is given to all health professionals and many students are required to carry out small research or audit projects to practise these skills.

Getting more involved in research could mean helping carry out a research project; perhaps by providing clinical expertise to inform part of a larger project. This would mean that more experienced researchers will lead the project but it will provide an opportunity to start to learn the processes involved in research.

The next level would be to become part of a research team to develop a project, find funding and carry it out. More experienced clinical staff may find research at this level attractive since it offers a method to find answers to problems and improve patient care.

Finally, some health care professionals may wish to pursue a research career in parallel with, or instead of, their clinical career. To do this, a PhD is a minimum requirement, but this qualification could open doors to academic careers, leading research programmes, or teaching others.

The majority of research activity and support tends to be concentrated in larger NHS trusts and particularly in those departments with strong links to universities and teaching students. Nevertheless, research can be successfully carried out in any part of the health service if you have the will and drive to make it happen.

Universities are also centres of research and most successful health researchers will either work for, or have strong links with, a university. Health research is also carried out by commercial organisations and many charities are involved in funding and commissioning research.

All health care professionals are duty bound to provide care that is based on the best evidence available, which demonstrates that the particular therapy, intervention or technique actually works. Not all people are inspired to undertake the task of discovering new evidence, but all health professionals do need to understand how research is done and how to interpret the findings of others. Much of the first part of this handbook will help guide anyone through the process of finding, appraising and interpreting research. Other people will find the challenge of discovery appealing, and for those, the rest of the handbook will offer guidance on how to tackle the process.

First and foremost it is important to realise that research is nearly always a team effort. Do not be seduced into thinking this means all members of the team share the workload equally; if the research is your idea and you are leading the project you will end up doing the bulk of the work. Nonetheless, having other more experienced people on the team means you can draw on their expertise and approach them for advice when you need it. This certainly means you will avoid many errors and it will also save you time. Since health care is often team oriented, there are many opportunities to link into ready formed teams to benefit from their experience and guidance.

Some of the characteristics a researcher needs are an ability to work methodically with attention to detail, good time planning and organisational skills, and an ability to communicate clearly. A good researcher also needs patience, determination, persistence and a thick skin to deal with rejection! Underpinning all of these traits good researchers must be curious, always questioning what they do, and they need to have a desire to pursue answers in the face of many difficulties. If you can identify with this description, research may be just the challenge for you.

On top of these personal characteristics, successful researchers need appropriate support from the organisation in which they work. This includes an environment where: