Guys and St Thomas NHS Foundation Trust

Emergency Scientific & Medical Services (eSMS) provide 24/7 medical information and clinical advice for healthcare professionals and patients on behalf of pharmaceutical and contract research organisations.
A well established team of experienced information scientists and consultant physicians is available at all times to provide a seamless 24 hour response. The high quality services we provide are tailored to meet the specific requirements of our clients. Services include medical response and emergency unblinding for clinical trials, medical information for licensed products and IMPs and the management and reporting of adverse events.
Our procedures are robust and extensively tested to be GCP compliant. We are regularly audited by our clients and inspected by the MHRA, all with positive outcomes.

About Us
eSMS operates as a commercial service within the Medical Toxicology Information Services (MTIS) of Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust.
MTIS, formerly Guy’s Poisons Unit, was established in 1963 to provide 24 hour emergency medical information on the management of poisoned patients, advising on toxicity, likely clinical effects, treatment options and, where available, to dispatch antidotes in cases of confirmed poisoning.  eSMS is a not-for-profit service dedicated to improving patient safety and establishing best practice in delivering high quality, 24/7 medical response services.

Our Vision
The niche services offered by eSMS provide a robust, cost effective solution to the critical elements of emergency response and medical information cover. Our aim is to provide 24/7 cover for our clients, delivering a high quality service regardless of the time of day. Patient safety is paramount and outweighs any commercial considerations. eSMS strive to be the provider of choice for clinical trial emergency response and medical information delivery.

eSMS Team
Enquiries are answered initially by a team of experienced information scientists. Our staff are accustomed to dealing with complex medical enquiries; providing concise, accurate and informed responses within critical time-frames.
Operating within a hospital environment gives eSMS immediate access to consultant physicians to provide clinical advice on the treatment and management of patients. Our consultants practice General and Internal Medicine and specialise in Clinical Pharmacology and Toxicology. They are available at all times, with a maximum response time of 15 minutes.
The current team has worked together for over 6 years; some have worked for MTIS for more than 20 years.

Our Services
Emergency Unblinding / Code Breaking
Staff are trained to perform emergency unblinding according to strictly controlled, client approved procedures and are experienced in assessing information about medical emergencies and whether unblinding is necessary for patient safety.
Adverse Event Management
Our consultant physicians are able to provide clinical information and advice on the treatment and management of the patient. Adverse event reports are audio-recorded, fully documented and reported to the client immediately following the enquiry.

Medical Information Services
eSMS provide a comprehensive medical information service for licensed products; both medicines and medical devices. Our services can be made available to all product users: healthcare professionals and customers.
Information provided by, or approved by the clients e.g. SPCs, PILs, SVRs, FAQs, supplemented by our extensive in-house information resources, is used to answer enquiries about:

• use of the product
• clinical effects of the product
• excipients
• pharmacokinetics
• interactions
• adverse events
• critical product faults