His research interests focus on cardiovascular epidemiology and clinical trials, especially relating to vascular and stroke risk, and heart failure. He has published 13 books, 28 book chapters, and over 350 papers in peer-reviewed journals such as the Lancet and the BMJ, and his research has impacted international health policies and clinical guidelines. Within the NHS, he has consulted on National Service Frameworks for CHD, atrial fibrillation, and heart failure, together with several National Institute of Clinical Excellence (NICE) reviews.
He is director of the NIHR Collaboration for Leadership in Applied Health Research and Care, Oxford, and since 2009 has been the national director of the NIHR School for Primary Care Research. From 2005 to 2009 he was co-director of the Quality and Outcomes Review Panel. He sits on many scientific and research funding boards, including the Council of the British Heart Foundation, and is President of the European Primary Care Cardiovascular Society and a member of Atrial Fibrillation Association’s Medical Advisory Committee. For the past 30 years he has worked as a part-time principal in general practice at Bellevue Medical Centre in Birmingham.
He was elected a Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences in 2002.