PEGET is a multidisciplinary group with roots in the Groningen Research Institute of Pharmacy and the University Medical Center Groningen. Main research fields are: pharmacoepidemiology, pharmacogenetics, pharmacotherapy and precision drug therapy, quality of drug use, pharmacovigilance and pharmaco-economics. Within these fields, the following research themes and projects are currently distinguished and represent the focus of the program:
1. Optimizing the efficiency and quality of pharmaceutical interventions
- Assessments of the use of medicines in real world settings with a strong focus on multifactorial diseases and multi-morbidities, in particular in the context of optimal prescribing, dispensing and adherence;
- Monitoring of medication safety and management of medication errors in clinical practice, specifically in vulnerable patient groups;
- Conduct of epidemiological and observational studies, including genetics, metabolomics, clinical and behavioral determinants, with healthcare databases to enhance personalized and stratified treatment;
- Conduct of specifically designed RCTs and pragmatic studies to evaluate new and existing pharmaceutical interventions and policies, including regulatory measures, to further enhance the quality of pharmaceutical care and develop best practices;
- Conduct of studies to assess cost-effectiveness of drugs and vaccination programs, also in relation to patient preferences and personalized treatment strategies.
2. Development, validation and application of advanced methodologies to generate scientific knowledge on determinants and effects of interventions in routine medical practice as well as to support policy making.
- Research into causal and subgroup methodologies using observational individual and aggregated patient information by use of Big data stored in large databases, such as IADB.nl, Eurocat, GIANTT, LifeLines, Lareb/VigiBase (WHO), DIAMETRIC, PHAMOUS, VIPP, CPRD, RNG, Vektis, UK-Biobank;
- Development of bias-adjustment and prediction techniques in Individual Patient Data analyses, meta-analyses and mixed-treatment comparisons;
- Development and application of new methodologies to estimate adherence (initiation, implementation and persistence) to multiple medications;
- Development of pharmaco-economic and risk-benefit models combining data from various sources
As part of the PEGET research program, “real world” data from prescription, healthcare and trial databases are maintained. Research takes advantage of the presence of the unique stable population of the Northern provinces of the Netherlands. We aim to stabilize and further increase the funding for “Big Pharmaceutical Data laboratories” and strengthen our grant positions by joint research projects, notably with other more clinically-oriented groups from GUIDE. We also aim to conduct studies with practice-based researchers, including (hospital) pharmacists and primary care practitioners. The ageing of the population and the vast and accruing possibilities for pharmaceutical interventions – both curative and preventive – pose challenges that cover a broad range of research and policy sectors. This requires collaborations beyond the PEGET or GUIDE structures, for example, within the Faculty FSE broader theme Data Science and Systems Complexity, and with agencies such as the Dutch Medicines Evaluation Board (CBG-MEB) and the Dutch Pharmacovigilance center (LAREB), as well as with partners in practice (e.g. other hospitals, professional and patient organizations). Also, we collaborate in EU-funded projects, such as UNISEC, PROMINENT, PRONKJEWAIL, and the Collaborative Groningen-Tomsk Pharmacogenotyping project.