Improving Evidence Sharing in the Health and Social Care for Older People through an Evaluated Practitioner Research Programme
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Edinburgh
Department Name: Research on Families and Relationships
Abstract
As western societies experience an aging population, improving, or even maintaining, the quality of health and social care of older people is a significant issue. Reflecting wider trends, in Scotland by 2031 the number of people aged 65 and over is projected to be 58% higher than in 2004. This represents a significant challenge to health and social care services, as well as to individuals providing care to relatives or friends. This project is based on the premise that in order to tackle this issue there is a need for a stronger evidence base related to older people that those designing, providing or receiving care can draw on. There is also a need for better sharing of this evidence base and greater use of this evidence across policy, practice, provider and research groups to improve the lives of older people.
This project brings together a team of academics, policy-makers, practitioners, older people accessing health and social care provision, and specialists in evidence-use in practice and knowledge media. Together we will draw together existing evidence and generate new knowledge and understanding about improving health and social care for older people, and embed the use of this evidence to then improve the lives of older people across Scotland.
The project involves 4 core components:
1) Synthesising the evidence about improving research use by and usefulness of research for those involved in receiving or delivering care, specifically examining the role practitioner research can play and building on lessons from earlier projects on which this work will build
2) Exploring the research priorities of the project partners in developing and sharing research evidence on the health and social care of older people; this will help the practitioner researchers to frame their small scale research projects
Project partners will be NHS Lothian, Scottish Care, Alzheimer Scotland. Glasgow City Council, and West Lothian Local Authority. These organisations will release up to 3 members of staff each in order to participate in the Practitioner Research Programme (PRP). They will also have a representative on the Project Steering group.
The Scottish Government and the Joint Improvement team will also be represented on the Steering Group as a reflection of their committment to this project.
3) Delivery of a Practitioner Research Programme (PRP) to support the development of small-scale research projects led by those delivering care for older people and involving older people receiving care, academic researchers and knowledge brokers in the co-production and translation of this research. Delivery will include supporting networking, knowledge exchange and sharing between those undertaking the research projects, and the promotion and dissemination of this research to national and international audiences.
4) Sharing existing and emerging evidence about how to support and embed practitioner research activities, and methods of improving engagement and collaboration between researchers and those involved in delivering services for those who require support
The project has 5 partners (NHS Lothian, Scottish Care, West Lothian Council, Glasgow City Council and Alzheimer Scotland) who will release staff to take part in the practitioner research programme (PRP) as practitioner researchers. The partners and the practitioners will benefit from improvements in their understanding of the health and social care for older people, and potentially improvements to the care they provide based on this improved understanding.
Further impact is expected through the widespread dissemination of learning from the research projects and from the impact evaluation of the process of holding a PRP and the knowledge translation, exchange and utilisation. These benefits will be for academic, practitioner, policymaker and service user audiences.
This project brings together a team of academics, policy-makers, practitioners, older people accessing health and social care provision, and specialists in evidence-use in practice and knowledge media. Together we will draw together existing evidence and generate new knowledge and understanding about improving health and social care for older people, and embed the use of this evidence to then improve the lives of older people across Scotland.
The project involves 4 core components:
1) Synthesising the evidence about improving research use by and usefulness of research for those involved in receiving or delivering care, specifically examining the role practitioner research can play and building on lessons from earlier projects on which this work will build
2) Exploring the research priorities of the project partners in developing and sharing research evidence on the health and social care of older people; this will help the practitioner researchers to frame their small scale research projects
Project partners will be NHS Lothian, Scottish Care, Alzheimer Scotland. Glasgow City Council, and West Lothian Local Authority. These organisations will release up to 3 members of staff each in order to participate in the Practitioner Research Programme (PRP). They will also have a representative on the Project Steering group.
The Scottish Government and the Joint Improvement team will also be represented on the Steering Group as a reflection of their committment to this project.
3) Delivery of a Practitioner Research Programme (PRP) to support the development of small-scale research projects led by those delivering care for older people and involving older people receiving care, academic researchers and knowledge brokers in the co-production and translation of this research. Delivery will include supporting networking, knowledge exchange and sharing between those undertaking the research projects, and the promotion and dissemination of this research to national and international audiences.
4) Sharing existing and emerging evidence about how to support and embed practitioner research activities, and methods of improving engagement and collaboration between researchers and those involved in delivering services for those who require support
The project has 5 partners (NHS Lothian, Scottish Care, West Lothian Council, Glasgow City Council and Alzheimer Scotland) who will release staff to take part in the practitioner research programme (PRP) as practitioner researchers. The partners and the practitioners will benefit from improvements in their understanding of the health and social care for older people, and potentially improvements to the care they provide based on this improved understanding.
Further impact is expected through the widespread dissemination of learning from the research projects and from the impact evaluation of the process of holding a PRP and the knowledge translation, exchange and utilisation. These benefits will be for academic, practitioner, policymaker and service user audiences.
Planned Impact
This project will deliver direct benefits for the partners involved: NHS Lothian, Scottish Care, West Lothian Council, Glasgow City Council and Alzheimer Scotland will benefit from improvements in their understanding of the health and social care for older people, and potentially improvements to the care they provide based on this improved understanding. The project will also ensure that participants in the Practitioner Research Programme (PRP) will benefit from greater research skills and capacity, and improved links within this group. These organisations are very supportive of this project and are keen to use the lessons emerging from the project to inform future developments within their organisations and for the care they provide, and the project specifically involves time dedicated to support the use of research within these partner organisations.
Beyond these direct partners, the project will also deliver significant benefits to the wider health and social service sectors and to carers supporting older people, by contributing to their understanding of how to improve care for older people, and the use and usefulness of research as a mechanism for improvement and innovation. It is expected that practitioners, service providers and policy-makers in the fields of health and social care of older people, will specifically benefit from the individual practitioner research projects, the key findings guide and the knowledge sharing events, which will feed into practice and policy debates around improving care for older people, as well as the design and delivery of care.
The impact of this learning on the wider social service sector will be maximised through the involvement of IRISS (Institute for Research and Innovation in Social Services). IRISS is a third sector organisation with strong links across the social services in Scotland, links which are supported through a network of IRISS 'champions' across the 32 local authorities in Scotland and a range of independent and private sector social service organisations. IRISS are also one of the partners on the Knowledge Management for Social Service Scotland Board, and can utilise its remit and involvement to further maximise the sharing and use of knowledge generated through this project across social services in Scotland. Impact will further be maximised through the on-line repository for research projects and the dissemination of findings through existing newsletters, new social media channels, events and contacts. All publications will also be made available via CRFR and IRISS's websites, the Learning Exchange and Social Service Knowledge Scotland (SSKS), and highlighted via a range of dissemination channels, including CRFR and IRISS's mailing lists, IDOX, relevant communities of practice, new social media channels. For key outputs press releases will be distributed.
Finally, we anticipate that the involvement of the practitioner researchers from a range of organisations providing or influencing the provision of health and social care for older people will help to demonstrate the benefits of using research to improve and innovate. We are hopeful that those within the partner projects will become a strong network of champions for using and doing research, and through this example we can better demonstrate the usefulness of research to the wider social service sector.
Beyond these direct partners, the project will also deliver significant benefits to the wider health and social service sectors and to carers supporting older people, by contributing to their understanding of how to improve care for older people, and the use and usefulness of research as a mechanism for improvement and innovation. It is expected that practitioners, service providers and policy-makers in the fields of health and social care of older people, will specifically benefit from the individual practitioner research projects, the key findings guide and the knowledge sharing events, which will feed into practice and policy debates around improving care for older people, as well as the design and delivery of care.
The impact of this learning on the wider social service sector will be maximised through the involvement of IRISS (Institute for Research and Innovation in Social Services). IRISS is a third sector organisation with strong links across the social services in Scotland, links which are supported through a network of IRISS 'champions' across the 32 local authorities in Scotland and a range of independent and private sector social service organisations. IRISS are also one of the partners on the Knowledge Management for Social Service Scotland Board, and can utilise its remit and involvement to further maximise the sharing and use of knowledge generated through this project across social services in Scotland. Impact will further be maximised through the on-line repository for research projects and the dissemination of findings through existing newsletters, new social media channels, events and contacts. All publications will also be made available via CRFR and IRISS's websites, the Learning Exchange and Social Service Knowledge Scotland (SSKS), and highlighted via a range of dissemination channels, including CRFR and IRISS's mailing lists, IDOX, relevant communities of practice, new social media channels. For key outputs press releases will be distributed.
Finally, we anticipate that the involvement of the practitioner researchers from a range of organisations providing or influencing the provision of health and social care for older people will help to demonstrate the benefits of using research to improve and innovate. We are hopeful that those within the partner projects will become a strong network of champions for using and doing research, and through this example we can better demonstrate the usefulness of research to the wider social service sector.
People |
ORCID iD |
| Heather Wilkinson (Principal Investigator) | |
| Sarah Morton (Researcher) |
Publications
Lightowler C
(2018)
How practitioner-led research could have greater impact: the importance of considering knowledge mobilisation holistically
in Evidence and Policy
Wilkinson H
(2012)
PROP and Becoming and Boundary Spanner
| Description | The main findings from the project relate to two areas. First there are the findings from the individual research projects undertaken by the practitioners from a range of social care organisations. Second there are findings in revelation to practitioners research and the effective research translation of these findings. |
| Exploitation Route | The work has been taken forward in a partnership between the university of Edinburgh and IRISS. Another practitioner research programme is currently running with 15 practitioners from across Scotland. |
| Sectors | Communities and Social Services/Policy,Education,Healthcare |
| Description | Findings are based on individual research reports from practitioners, an overview report with a summary, a ten page booklet highlighting key findings and the blogs and repository of literature and materials on a website. These have all been disseminated widely across the participating practitioners, their home organisations and across the networks of voluntary and statutory sectors developed during the project. New people continue to access findings through direct email contact. |
| First Year Of Impact | 2011 |
| Sector | Communities and Social Services/Policy,Healthcare |
| Impact Types | Societal |
| Description | Partnership between VOCAL Midlothian and Midlothian Council |
| Organisation | VOCAL Midlothian |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
| PI Contribution | The PROP project enabled a partnership between two of the project's partner organisations: VOCAL Midlothian and Midlothian Council. Practitioners from each organisation partnered to produce a research project as part of this practitioner-research programme. This partnership has lead to on-going collaboration between the two organisations, including shared learning about different approaches to Carer's Assessments. |
| Start Year | 2012 |
| Description | Practitioner-Research: Carer's Assessments and Outcomes Focused Working with Carers |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Primary Audience | |
| Results and Impact | A presentation to undergraduate social work students at the University of Edinburgh as part of the mandatory Social Work 1b module convened by Dr. Steve Kirkwood. This lecture gave an overview the process of practitioner-research, including some discussion on the dual position of the researcher as practitioner. This lecture also included some substantive findings from the practitioner's joint research project on Carer's Assessments which was a comparative study of the process of assessing carer's needs at Midlothian Council and VOCAL Midlothian (a third sector organisation which supports carers). |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |