The assessment of risk and safety in mental health services.
Research type
Research Study
Full title
The assessment of risk and safety in mental health services.
IRAS ID
219895
Contact name
Lynne Macrae
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Manchester
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
Z6787610, University of Manchester Data Protection; 8D594/ECC0020, NHS Information Governance Toolkit
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 9 months, 1 days
Research summary
The assessment and management of risk is a core function for mental health practitioners. Risk assessments may be useful in categorising patients into low, medium or high risk groups, based on their current situation which can then guide appropriate treatment. However, the clinical assessment of suicide risk is challenging as each individual will present with different risk factors. There are a variety of tools currently being used in mental health services, some of which are locally developed and typically are not validated. The National Confidential Inquiry into Suicide and Homicide (NCISH) previously looked at clinical assessments prior to suicide and have reported a ‘low risk paradox’, i.e. clinicians rated the immediate risk of suicide as low or none at final service contact for the vast majority of patients who went on to die by suicide. The aim of this study will be to identify risk assessment tools used by mental health practitioners and investigate the way they are used, especially in people who have been classified as at low/no risk of suicide. The views of health professionals on the use of these tools and how they may be improved will also be investigated. Data will be collected via telephone interviews asking clinicians to express their views on risk assessment tools. In addition, a web based survey on the use of risk assessment tools will be completed by mental health practitioners, managers, service users, and carers. The findings of this study will be valuable in informing national policy on risk assessment and improvement of risk tools.
REC name
North West - Greater Manchester South Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
17/NW/0345
Date of REC Opinion
26 Jun 2017
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion