Dr Gordon Duncan (BMSc (Hons), MBChB, PhD, FRCP Edin)

Consultant Physician & NHS Research Scotland Career Research Fellow & Honorary Clinical Senior Lecturer

Biography

Background

2017 - present: NHS Research Scotland Career Research Fellow

2015 - present: Hon Clinical Senior Lecturer

2014 - present: Consultant Physician, NHS Lothian

2011 – 2014: Clinical Research Fellow, Institute for Ageing and Health, Newcastle University

2007 – 2014: Higher Specialist Training in Geriatric Medicine and General Internal Medicine, Northern Deanery 

I am a Consultant Geriatrician at the Western General Hospital in Edinburgh and am committed to delivering the best care for older people today while researching better ways to diagnose and care for people in the future.

I specialise in the care of older adults and am skilled in the assessment, diagnosis and management of acute and chronic medical conditions including falls, dementia, movement disorders, polypharmacy, osteoporosis and frailty.  I have a sub-specialist interest in Parkinson’s disease and movement disorders in older people and have extensive clinical and research experience as well as being an enthusiastic clinical teacher.

I qualified from Dundee University Medical School in 2002 and trained in Dundee, Middlesbrough and New Zealand.  I obtained Membership of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh in 2006.  I undertook higher specialty training in General Internal Medicine (GIM) and Geriatric Medicine in the Northern Deanery (2007-14).

I was a Clinical Research Fellow in the Institute for Ageing and Health at Newcastle University with Prof David Burn (2011 – 2013).  My PhD focused on the evolution and impact of non-motor symptoms and cognitive impairment in people with early Parkinson’s disease and particularly the development of biomarkers for cognitive impairment in Parkinson’s.  In addition I gained considerable clinical expertise of all aspects of Parkinson’s disease in a tertiary Movement Disorders centre.

Research

I am an Honorary Clinical Senior Lecturer, Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences at the University of Edinburgh and an NHS Research Scotland Clinical Fellow and work closely with colleagues in the Neuroprogressive and Dementia Network.  As a clinical academic, I am committed to designing and conducting studies and trials that are meaningful and address problems that are directly relevant to people with Parkinson’s and in doing so leading to impactful improvements in clinical practice.

Older people are underrepresented in clinical research and optimising study recruitment and participation is vital.  I have considerable experience of patient engagement and involvement to ensure local people have access to the studies that we manage.

I am the principal investigator for a range of observational and interventional studies including CTIMPs.  For details of current studies, please visit: (https://services.nhslothian.scot/neuroprogressiveanddementianetwork/current-studies/)

I continue to build research capacity and develop the portfolio of Parkinson’s research in Edinburgh and Scotland.  To support this, I am a member of the NIHR Clinical Research Network for Neurodegeneration Neurodegenerative Studies Group and the UK Parkinson's Disease Clinical Studies Group.

Teaching and Training

I am an enthusiastic teacher and clinical educator and regularly teach healthcare professionals about Parkinson’s disease locally and nationally.

I am an educational supervisor for Specialist Registrars and am the theme lead for Movement Disorders Training in Geriatric Medicine for South-East Scotland

University of Edinburgh.

  • Supervise undergraduate and Masters projects
  • Supervise 4th and 6th Year Medical students during clinical attachments with Medicine for the Elderly.

Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh

  • I am an active Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh and a member of the Symposium Committee.  I examine PACES for the MRCP UK examination.

Quality & Service Improvement

  • I am champion for the delivery of high quality, safe and patient focused services. I design and lead QI programmes to ensure that patients have access to the best possible care.
  • I am the local Parkinson’s audit lead and am the Clinical Lead for the South-East Scotland Parkinson’s Excellence Network. 

 

NIHR Clinical Research Network for Neurodegeneration

Member of Neurodegenerative Studies Group (NSG) (NIHR) representing Scotland for CSO NDN.  This involves 4x TC meetings annually and is an opportunity to raise the prolife of Scottish research in NIHR.

UK Parkinson's Disease Clinical Studies Group

Member of UK Parkinson's Disease Clinical Studies Group.  Funded by Cure Parkinson’s Trust, this national group supports Parkinson’s clinical research across the UK to accelerate discoveries and improve the lives of those affected by Parkinson’s.

 

Qualifications

2017: FRCP (Edinburgh)

2014: PhD – Newcastle University

2002: MBChB – University of Dundee

2000: BMSc (Hons) – University of Dundee

Responsibilities & affiliations

Memberships

Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh

British Geriatrics Society (Council Member – Scotland)

Movement Disorders Society

British Medical Association

Scottish Society of Physicians

Undergraduate teaching

Medical School

Research summary

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a progressive and disabling neurodegenerative disorder which encompasses abnormal movements, neuropsychiatric disturbances, autonomic dysfunction and ultimately, dementia.  There are approximately 10,000 people living with PD in Scotland.  In common with other neurodegenerative disorders, treatment remains symptomatic and there are no disease-modifying therapies commercially available.

I am committed to involving people with Parkinson’s in research.  My experience of performing laboratory research, observational studies and clinical trials has shown me that a collaborative translational approach is essential and that partnerships between NHS clinicians, academics and industry are an effective way of delivering high quality clinical research.

Research aims and interests

We are building a translational clinical research programme for Parkinson’s disease and associated neurodegenerative disorders which will, for the first time, unite the established experimental research programmes of Edinburgh University with clinical medicine. 

People with Parkinson’s will be given the opportunity to participate in CTIMPs of novel treatments for all stages of PD and also for the non-motor features such as dementia, psychosis, sleep disorders and autonomic dysfunction.  Our ultimate aim is to conduct CTIMPs for potentially disease-modifying and regenerative therapies.

Current research interests

Current studies Exenatide PD3: A Randomised, double blind, parallel group, placebo controlled, Phase 3 trial of Exenatide once weekly over two-years as a potential disease modifying treatment for Parkinson's disease CHIEF-PD: Cholinesterase Inhibitors to prevent Falls in Parkinson’s Disease COBALT: COmBining memantine And cholinesterase inhibitors in Lewy body dementia Treatment trial TOPHAT: Trial of Ondansetron as a Parkinson’s Hallucinations Treatment

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