Evaluation of a Self-Monitoring intervention for AF
Research type
Research Study
Full title
An evaluation of a self-monitoring intervention aimed at supporting the management of patients prescribed Warfarin for Atrial Fibrillation at risk of stroke in the North West Coast region of England.
IRAS ID
248331
Contact name
Emma Bray
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Central Lancashire
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 5 months, 31 days
Research summary
The management of Atrial Fibrillation (AF) is sub-optimal and a recognised priority for improvement in the UK, in order to reduce the occurrence of avoidable stroke. A number of interventions have been developed to improve the management of AF, and specifically to improve the use of warfarin in treating AF. One such intervention, shown to be effective, is to support patients to self-monitor their warfarin dosing, to ensure effective management of AF.
Currently, in East Lancashire, patients using Warfarin attend regular anti-coagulation clinics held at their GP practice, hospital or outreach clinic, where a Healthcare professional will test that they have an International Normalisation Ratio (INR), a measure of anticoagulation, within the established therapeutic range (TR). However, as self-monitoring of Warfarin has been shown to be a more effective approach, primary and secondary care settings in East Lancashire have decided to trial implementing this approach.
The current project will evaluate the implementation of self-monitoring of Warfarin in East Lancashire NHS settings. This will include evaluation and consideration of the barriers and facilitators, and the impact, of the self-monitoring intervention. The information obtained will inform further developments and provide essential information for implementation more widely.
In order to achieve the aim we will:
o Conduct a process evaluation based on a logic model appropriate to the health care setting
o Capture clinical staff, patient’s and other relevant peoples experiences by conducting focus groups, interviews and a survey
o Analyse routinely available clinical information, collected by the intervention team, to allow sub-group analysis.REC name
West Midlands - South Birmingham Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
18/WM/0330
Date of REC Opinion
22 Oct 2018
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion