Developing a structured intervention for acute mental health admission
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Admission and acute mental health: developing a structured intervention within a shared decision making (SDM) and self-regulation framework
IRAS ID
114269
Contact name
Tina Fanneran - Must be copied into all letters
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
South Staffordshire and Shropshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust
Research summary
It is recommended that all patients are involved in decisions about prescribed medicines and their on-going care (Nice, 2009). It is suggested that this promotes service user empowerment who regularly express a desire to be more involved with care planning. It has specifically been highlighted that patient perceptions of treatment during the first week of an inpatient stay are a relevant predictor of longer term recovery. However, local and national findings demonstrate that inpatient care is a key source of dissatisfaction for service users and carers.
The process of admission to mental health inpatient settings can be a source of distress for some service users. Service users report experiencing poor communication, a lack of therapeutic input and overemphasis on medication. In addition they express confusion surrounding the reasons and purpose of their admission. In order to improve shared decision making between services users and mental health professionals, it is essential that shared understandings of the reasons and purpose for admission to adult acute care are developed. The provision of information on or shortly after admission has been identified as a valuable resource. Research demonstrates that the one-to-one nature of this encounter both enhances communication and presents a prime opportunity to better incorporate service user input to care planning. However, if inconsistently applied this process may become tokenistic and potentially ineffective. It is anticipated that the implementation of a structured intervention will encourage direct service user input to care planning, thus enhancing service user satisfaction and promoting shared decision making.
A 1-1 structured information package designed for use shortly after admission to the ward will be designed. The information package will be trialled on the wards to ascertain whether structured, 1-1 work on admission could promote shared understandings of reason for admission, increase service user satisfaction, promote shared decision making, encourage direct service user input to care plans and enhance concordance with treatment plans.
REC name
East Midlands - Derby Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
13/EM/0294
Date of REC Opinion
29 Aug 2013
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion