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Active ageing through wellbeing: the role of information in ‘that little bit of help’
- Authors:
- DAVIS Howard, RITTERS Katrina
- Journal article citation:
- Research Policy and Planning, 30(1), 2013, pp.23-35.
- Publisher:
- Social Services Research Group
Information and the ability to act on it are seen as vital parts of the choice and personalisation agendas in health and social care. This is particularly important as older people are encouraged to do more for themselves in an era of budget reductions. The right information given at the right time can give access to that ‘little bit of help’, first described by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (2005), to help keep people independent and out of health and care systems for longer. Understanding how, where and why people access services and information is therefore key to developing supportive policies for an ageing society. This paper describes some of the literature and focuses on two projects aimed at widening access and improving information. LinkAge Plus was a £10million government funded project, trialling a variety of different approaches to widening access. The Stratford-upon-Avon Early Intervention Project trialled a digitised self-assessment process for wellbeing linked to local sources of help. This paper stresses the importance of social networks and describes how outreach work in Tower Hamlets, one of the LinkAge plus pilots, was working to improve these. (Publisher abstract)
How can the benefits of personal budgets for people with mental illness be sustained after the payments stop?
- Authors:
- CLEWETT Naomi, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Research Policy and Planning, 31(2), 2014/15, pp.105-126.
- Publisher:
- Social Services Research Group
One aim of mental health social work is to promote recovery and independence for people accessing services. Personal budgets, which can now be requested by all mental health service users in England, can enable service users to achieve these outcomes. This paper addresses the lack of evidence on service user understandings of the purpose and duration of their personal budget, and their experiences of personal budgets ending. The research draws on interviews with 53 mental health service users and 28 practitioners. The results identify how different factors affect the sustainability of the outcome: the type of outcome identified, how far service user and practitioner understanding of outcomes are shared, and the ability to continue activities after the budget ends. The article highlights learning for practitioners and policy makers on improving the sustainability of outcomes achieved through personal budgets, and improving service user experiences of their endings. (Edited publisher abstract)
An integrated inspectorate – a time and a place. Care and Social Services Inspectorate Wales: a case study
- Author:
- PICKFORD Rob
- Journal article citation:
- Research Policy and Planning, 27(3), 2009, pp.199-204.
- Publisher:
- Social Services Research Group
This paper is concerned with the role and the place of inspection and regulation in securing improvement, and how inspectorates can contribute more widely to the improvement agenda. It examines how one inspectorate has tackled the creation of an integrated inspectorate. Since 2002, there had been 2 inspectorates in Wales for social services and social care, but, in April 2007, these inspectorates were integrated and Care and Social Services Inspectorate Wales (CSSIW) was born. The key driver for the new arrangements was to create an integrated view of social services and social care. The aim was not simply an integrated inspectorate but, rather, an integrated approach to the way in which inspection contributed to the delivery of services that met the policy agenda of Wales. The new model, called the ‘circle of care’, provides the single inspectorate with an overview of social services and care from commissioning through contracting to assessment and care management, to provision and into leadership and management. The immediate effect was to dissolves the boundary between the traditional activities of regulation and inspection. The article describes how the integrated CSSIW has played a major part in changing the relationship between the inspectorate, the inspected bodies, and the nature of inspection.
Careful thoughts: recognising and supporting older carers in intermediate care
- Authors:
- TOWNSEND Jean, MOORE Jeanette
- Journal article citation:
- Research Policy and Planning, 24(1), 2006, pp.39-52.
- Publisher:
- Social Services Research Group
Recognition and support for carers has become an increasingly important part of government policy over the past decade. This paper draws on data from a national evaluation of intermediate care. the study adopted a mixed-method, case-study approach across five English localities. It describes patterns of informal caring relationships among older people who were using intermediate care services and considers the issues which affect how the carers perceived their caring roles, the service interventions which they found helpful during intermediate care, and the negotiations and decision-making processes as people moved from intermediate care to mainstream services.
The influence of individual characteristics in the reporting of home care services quality by service users
- Authors:
- SANDHU Sima, BEBBINGTON Andrew, NETTEN Ann
- Journal article citation:
- Research Policy and Planning, 24(1), 2006, pp.1-12.
- Publisher:
- Social Services Research Group
In recent years, increased emphasis has been placed on consulting, involving and informing service users. A national survey in 2003 indicated that reported levels of satisfaction with services were associated with individual home care service users' characteristics. This case study aims to investigate further the association between individual service users and need-related characteristics in judgements of service quality, within on local authority. The local authority selected was a metropolitan authority situated in the North West of England. Reported service quality was assessed using a measure based on items in an extended version of the 2003 User Experience Survey (UES). Additional data about service users were sought from commissioning databases and client case records. Multivariate analysis indicated a relationship between service users and need-related characteristics in the reporting of service users satisfaction. Judgements of service satisfaction were not influenced by demographic characteristics alone, but by a complex interaction between individual characteristics, situational factors, dependency characteristics and structure of the care package. This case study suggests possible explanations for individual variation in the reporting of service satisfaction based on the interplay between expectations and experience.
Young people's participation in social services policy making
- Author:
- GUNN Robert
- Journal article citation:
- Research Policy and Planning, 23(3), 2005, pp.127-137.
- Publisher:
- Social Services Research Group
This article draws on data collected from three case studies to explore how young people how are 'looked after' participate in social services policy making. The fieldwork was carried out which subsequent change in practice and culture may be explored. Three social service departments are used as cases in which the policy process is examined from the different viewpoints of stakeholders. Varying patterns of participation were discerned in the three cases. Only one of the departments studied had been able to successfully embed participation into its policy process.
Mind the gap: a case study for changing organisational responses to disabled parents and their families using evidence based practice
- Authors:
- CRAWSHAW Marilyn, WATES Michele
- Journal article citation:
- Research Policy and Planning, 23(2), 2005, pp.111-122.
- Publisher:
- Social Services Research Group
This case study describes work carried out by Making Research Count (University of York) project with social services and health agencies to help them develop services for disabled parents. The structure combined the presentation of relevant research findings over one day with follow up consultation and an additional day's structured input after eight weeks to develop goal-focussed implementation strategies. Adult learning theory, systematic organisational theory and practice around management of change and the system for Analysing Verbal Interaction were used. The evaluation suggested that it achieved some success in facilitating research informed implementation strategies. A typology for measuring change is suggested.
The costs of scrutiny in applied health and social care research: a case study
- Authors:
- HUXLEY Peter, DAVIDSON Bill, KING Sarah
- Journal article citation:
- Research Policy and Planning, 23(1), 2005, pp.55-60.
- Publisher:
- Social Services Research Group
This article is informed by the authors experience of seeking approval to undertake three funded research projects, between them covering 17 locations across England. The time taken to seek approval for one of these projects is described as a case study. The authors make a number of suggestions for improving the implementation of research governance, including the harmonisation of procedures, greater reciprocity between different organisations, and the registration of researchers.
Exploring the factors influencing care management arrangements in adult mental health services
- Authors:
- HUGHES Jane, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Research Policy and Planning, 23(1), 2005, pp.31-42.
- Publisher:
- Social Services Research Group
This article explores issues intrinsic to the development of integrated care for adults with mental health problems: multidisciplinary team working practices; arrangements for determining eligibility and assessment; integrating care management and CPA; and joint commissioning. It comprises information from six case studies derived primarily from interviews with senior and first-time managers, consequent on a national study of care management arrangements. These findings are discussed in the light of current policy initiatives and demonstrate the complexities of developing assessment and care management arrangements with an integrated service framework.
User involvement in primary care: a case study examining the work of one patient participation group attached to a primary care practice in North London
- Authors:
- TAYLOR Gina, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Research Policy and Planning, 22(1), 2004, pp.21-30.
- Publisher:
- Social Services Research Group
The involvement of patients and the public in the planning of health care is high on the political agenda. However, user involvement in health care remains under-researched and there are few models on which to draw. This case study examines a Patient Participation Group attached to one primary care practice in North London at a time when the transition was being made to Primary Care Groups and Trusts. A combined approach using both quantitative and qualitative research was used to evaluate the work of the group. The usual problems with representativeness were identified, together with the difficulty of attracting new members to the group. The Patient Participation Group members felt that they functioned better when the practice was fund-holding and had difficulty identifying with the concept of the Primary Care Group with its wider remit.