Dr Katie Banister

Biography

I am a Health Services Researcher with a special interest and expertise in the design, conduct and analysis of pragmatic diagnostic accuracy studies and clinical trials. I am also the Health Services Research Unit representative for Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement.  Involving patients and the public is central to the research at HSRU which is aimed at improving healthcare for the benefit of patients.

To find out more about the work of the Health Services Research Unit please click here

I am currently supporting the management of the SCRiPT trial (a pragmatic randomised trial of treatments for deep tooth decay in primary care dentistry) and the PUrE trial (a pragmatic randomised controlled trial of surgical treatments for lower pole kidney stones) 

I also lead the management of the EDNA study, an evaluation of the diagnostic accuracy of non-invasive tests for early detection of neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD).  

I first joined the unit in 2010 working on the Surveillance for Ocular Hypertension project. Since then I have worked on several large clinical research studies. Previously, I worked on the GATE study - an evaluation of the diagnostic accuracy of imaging tests for glaucoma diagnosis and the PEG study, an evaluation of progression in glaucoma.

Prior to joining the unit, I was a clinical scientist specialising in physiological measurement within the NHS. I graduated from the University of Oxford with a BA in Physics in 1993 and gained a PhD in Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy from the University of Nottingham in 1998.

Internal Memberships

Katie is the HSRU representative for Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement.

Research Overview

Katie has a particular research interest in diagnostic test accuracy studies, and also in the monitoring of disease. She works collaboratively with clinicians across the UK to develop, conduct, manage and disseminate large clinical trials of diagnostic tests. She has wide experience in the area of secondary care diagnosis and monitoring in ophthalmology. Her previous research projects include

• EDNA: Early Detection of Neovascular Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD).  A multi-centre NIHR HTA funded study which investigated the diagnostic accuracy of a series of non-invasive tests for the early diagnosis of AMD. 
• The GATE Study - a NIHR HTA funded multi-centre research study to assess the diagnostic performance of automated imaging tests for diagnosing Glaucoma and
• Surveillance for Ocular Hypertension – the aim of this NIHR HTA funded study was to investigate the optimum surveillance strategies for monitoring patients at risk of Glaucoma because of high pressure in the eye (Ocular Hypertension)
• Progression Evaluation in Glaucoma: Funded by the International Glaucoma Association and UK and Eire Glaucoma Society, this study will look at the progression of disease in a cohort of patients who have recently been diagnosed with glaucoma or have been identified as being at risk of glaucoma.

Current Research

I am currently working on the following projects:

I lead the patient and public involvement group within HSRU and contribute towards supporting public involvement activities across the research portfolio of the Unit.

I am a trial manager for the following projects

SCRiPT:   SCRiPT stands for Selective Caries Removal In Posterior Teeth.  SCRiPT is a pragmatic randomised controlled trial in primary care dentistry, comparing the clinical and cost-effectiveness of Selective Caries Removal (SCR) with Complete Caries Removal (CCR) in permanent posterior teeth in participants aged 12 years and older across the UK.  

PUrE :  an NIHR HTA funded research study collecting information on the different ways of treating lower pole kidney stones. PUrE stands for the Percutaneous nephrolithotomy, flexible Ureterorenoscopy and Extracorporeal shockwave lithotripsy for lower pole kidney stone.

Funding and Grants

International Glaucoma Association/UK and Eire Glaucoma Society Research Award.  Progression of disease in patients newly diagnosed with glaucoma and glaucoma suspects participating in the GATE study.   K Banister, A Azuara-Blanco, C Ramsay.  (2014-2016)

NIHR Health Technology Assessment Programme.  Early Detection of Neovascular Age-related macular degeneration.  U Chakravarthy, C Ramsay, Sobha Sivaprasad, R Hogg, G Scotland, K Banister, J Cook, A Azuara-Blanco, H Heimann. (2015-2020)

Teaching Responsibilities

• Katie is a tutor on the Designing Real World Trials Course.  Course details
• Katie supervises post-graduate students at Masters level and is willing to discuss potential projects within her broad areas or interest.