What is the impact of research champions on integrating research in mental health clinical practice? A quasiexperimental study in South London, UK

TY - JOUR

T1 - What is the impact of research champions on integrating research in mental health clinical practice?

T2 - A quasiexperimental study in South London, UK

AU - Wykes, Til HM

AU - Oduola, Sherifat Abimbola

AU - Robotham, Daniel John

AU - Jamieson-Craig, Thomas Kern

PY - 2017/9

Y1 - 2017/9

N2 - Objectives Key challenges for mental health healthcare professionals to implement research alongside clinical activity have been highlighted, such as insufficient time to apply research skills and lack of support and resources. We examined the impact of employing dedicated staff to promote research in community mental health clinical settings.Design Quasiexperiment before and after study.Setting South London and Maudsley National Health Service Foundation Trust.Participants 4455 patients receiving care from 15 community mental health teams between 1 December 2013 and 31 December 2014.Outcome measures The proportion of patients approached for research participation in clinical services where research champions were present (intervention group), and where research champions were not present (comparison group).Results Patients in the intervention group were nearly six times more likely to be approached for research participation (Adj. OR=5.98; 95% CI 4.96 to 7.22).Conclusions Investing in staff that promote and drive research in clinical services increases opportunities for patients to hear about and engage in clinical research studies. However, investment needs to move beyond employing short-term staff.

AB - Objectives Key challenges for mental health healthcare professionals to implement research alongside clinical activity have been highlighted, such as insufficient time to apply research skills and lack of support and resources. We examined the impact of employing dedicated staff to promote research in community mental health clinical settings.Design Quasiexperiment before and after study.Setting South London and Maudsley National Health Service Foundation Trust.Participants 4455 patients receiving care from 15 community mental health teams between 1 December 2013 and 31 December 2014.Outcome measures The proportion of patients approached for research participation in clinical services where research champions were present (intervention group), and where research champions were not present (comparison group).Results Patients in the intervention group were nearly six times more likely to be approached for research participation (Adj. OR=5.98; 95% CI 4.96 to 7.22).Conclusions Investing in staff that promote and drive research in clinical services increases opportunities for patients to hear about and engage in clinical research studies. However, investment needs to move beyond employing short-term staff.

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85034764642&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1136/bmjopen-2017-016107

DO - 10.1136/bmjopen-2017-016107

M3 - Article

SN - 2044-6055

VL - 7

JO - BMJ Open

JF - BMJ Open

IS - 9

M1 - e016107

ER -