Contact Patterns in Care Homes
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Study of Contact Patterns in Care Homes in the UK
IRAS ID
354351
Contact name
Ian Hall
Contact email
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 0 months, 1 days
Research summary
Contact patterns are a key part of the transmission of respiratory pathogens but currently very little is known about them in care homes; a setting where such pathogens have a big impact. Our study aims to better understand these patterns in this vulnerable setting.
It does this primarily through the use of wearable Bluetooth devices which come in the form of a light strap similar to a watch and a fob which can be hung on a lanyard or similar. These devices do not track location or record audio or video. Instead, they work by emitting a small Bluetooth signal and also detecting these signals from other devices. This allows us to track: who comes into contact with who, timing of the contact, proximity of contact, and additional static Bluetooth devices allows us to track the location of the contact. The wearable devices have unique IDs which keeps the data anonymous from everyone, the only breakdown researchers will receive is whether an individual is a resident or a staff member with or without care responsibilities. Only staff and residents will be asked to take part in the study, visitors will not. The study will be run across a handful of care homes in the North of England for 1 to 3 weeks in each.
To supplement this data researchers will also carry out a short survey with staff members at the end of a shift about the shift they just finished and their work pattern generally. Each staff member taking part will only be surveyed once. This will provide important context for the data from the Bluetooth devices and for care home staffing in the UK more widely. It will also allow us to compare this simpler method of obtaining contact pattern information with the method using Bluetooth devices.
REC name
Yorkshire & The Humber - Bradford Leeds Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
26/YH/0014
Date of REC Opinion
10 Feb 2026
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion