Co-Producing DBT Intervention Protocols for LGBTQ+ People
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Co-Producing LGBTQ-Affirmative Intervention Protocols for LGBTQ+ People at Risk of Self-Harm and Suicide. A Co-Production Study.
IRAS ID
355050
Contact name
Jake Camp
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
King's College London
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
N/A, N/A
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 9 months, 30 days
Research summary
Aims:
1. To co-produce new intervention parts that meet the needs of LGBTQ+ people at risk of self-harm or suicide, with LGBTQ+ people and therapists. These intervention parts will be integrated into a Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) intervention, that is provided earlier in a persons mental health care journey.
2. To assess how acceptable and possible the co-production process was for participants, and how well it achieved co-production principles (e.g. participants feel supported, that the aims were transparent, etc).Why is This Important?
Young people who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and with other minority gender and sexual identities (LGBTQ+) are much more likely to self-harm and experience suicidal thoughts than cisgender-heterosexual (non-LGBTQ+) people. They also experience barriers when accessing mental health support. Some of these barriers come from a lack of support tailored towards their needs as LGBTQ+ people. This often means that things get worse before they access the right support, and so are often seen in interventions for more severe difficulties, like DBT.What We Plan to Do:
We plan to hold some focus groups (at KCL Denmark Hill & on Microsoft Teams) with three groups of people to co-produce new intervention parts. The three groups include:
1. A group of LGBTQ+ young people (13-21 years old) who have completed DBT recently.
2. A group of LGBTQ+ young people (13-21 years old) who have never done DBT but experienced similar difficulties.
3. A group of DBT therapists who have supported LGBTQ+ young people before.We will seek feedback from participants about how acceptable they found the study (e.g. how satisfied they were with the process), how possible it was (e.g. were they able to attend), and how well we stuck to our co-production principles (e.g. how supported they felt).
The study will last around six months and is funded by the National Institute for Health Research.
REC name
North West - Greater Manchester East Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
25/NW/0217
Date of REC Opinion
21 Aug 2025
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion