MoreRESPECT
Research type
Research Study
Full title
MoreRESPECT: A Randomised controlled trial of a sexual health promotion intervention for people with severe mental illness delivered in community mental health settings
IRAS ID
309345
Contact name
Elizabeth Hughes
Contact email
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 11 months, 30 days
Research summary
People with severe mental illness (SMI) have significant unmet needs in terms of physical health when compared to the general population. Initiatives have commenced to address this; however, sexual health has been missed off the agenda. Positive sexual relationships are important for people with SMI, but this is rarely discussed in routine mental health care. Therefore, they can be unaware of important information such as where to get sexual health advice, how to reduce risk of sexually transmitted infections, contraceptive choices and finding relationships that are mutually respectful; rather than exploitative and abusive.
The moreRESPECT study builds on the learning from the RESPECT feasibility study, which established the safety, feasibility and acceptability of undertaking a randomised controlled trial of this intervention in this population.In this study, we will aim to answer the research question: is an intervention to promote sexual health for people with SMI clinically and cost-effective? We will evaluate whether a 3-session support package can improve sexual health in comparison to usual care. This study will recruit 400 participants with SMI from community mental health teams from NHS mental health services across England and Scotland. Participants will be randomly allocated to either the sexual health intervention group (in addition to usual care) or the usual care group. Data will be collected at the start of the participant’s involvement (baseline) and then at 3, 6, 9 and 12 months after randomisation.
REC name
North West - Preston Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
23/NW/0157
Date of REC Opinion
7 Jun 2023
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion