Developing Health Visiting services for families in Derbyshire
Research type
Research Study
Full title
To achieve an understanding of how Health Visiting services in Derbyshire need to adapt in order to respond to child and family needs emerging from the COVID-19 pandemic and its aftermath.
IRAS ID
312148
Contact name
Sarah Creer
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Derbyshire Community Health Services NHS Foundation Trust
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 4 months, 15 days
Research summary
The coronavirus pandemic has had a big impact on healthcare systems and service users. Ways in which services have been delivered have changed, putting more pressure on the workforce and dramatically changing the circumstances of need for patient groups. Given that the first few years of life are the most critical in determining future health and wellbeing over the life course, it is crucial to understand the impact of the pandemic and emerging cost of living crisis on health visiting and to explore ways to learn lessons and try and tackle disadvantages which have emerged or worsened over this period.
This study aims to look at some of the longer-term impacts of the pandemic and emerging cost of living crisis on staff within the Derbyshire 0-5 Health Visiting service and families who have used this service since the beginning of the pandemic period. Service data will be analysed to track changes in service delivery over the pandemic period and inform the changing needs of families. Staff members will be asked to take part in focus groups to talk about their experiences of service delivery over the pandemic period and since then: whether there have been new or emerging needs from families, what changes in delivery have taken place and how the experience has impacted their own wellbeing. Families will be asked to take part in interviews to provide their experiences of receiving services since the beginning of the pandemic and how their needs have changed.
The outputs of this study aim to be used to help inform service design and delivery to make sure that families receive services in the way that is most useful for them, that the service they receive is of high quality and that staff are well supported to deliver these services.REC name
North East - Newcastle & North Tyneside 2 Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
22/NE/0199
Date of REC Opinion
20 Oct 2022
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion