Exploring and evaluating integrated models of home care
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Evaluating the organisation, delivery and impact of person-centred, neighbourhood-based, integrated health and care models of home care: a multi-method study
IRAS ID
344271
Contact name
Liz Graham
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Leeds
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 2 months, 31 days
Research summary
Adults who receive home care are visited by social care staff who help with personal care and, separately, by health professionals who support health needs. Some places in the UK have new ways of supporting people at home which aim to provide more joined-up care. This means that a carer can provide support with health needs (e.g. insulin injections) AND personal care (e.g. getting washed), and might identify other help too (e.g. a community group). The people who organise home care think that this approach might be more efficient and more personal. There are differences across the UK in how this model of care is set up, and it is difficult to describe what it looks like. Although there are individual reports from people receiving and providing care that this ‘joined-up’ way of working is helpful, there is limited evidence of how well it works.
We aim to understand more about ‘joined-up’ models of home care: how they are organised, what happens in practice and what people think of them.
We will work in partnership with key people who have experience of home care (stakeholders): 1) organisations who set up care, 2) those who manage the delivery of care, 3) staff who provide care, 4) people receiving home care & their families, 5) research experts. We will consult with them throughout the study.
The study has three phases:
i) Reviewing reports about ‘joined-up’ models of home care across the UK and visiting regions that are delivering it to better understand what happens.
ii) Evaluating how ‘joined-up’ models of care work in two areas in England. We will interview people who provide and receive care, and look at documents which describe what is done and how it works.
iii) Making recommendations about how our findings can be used in practice and support future research.REC name
West Midlands - Coventry & Warwickshire Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
25/WM/0155
Date of REC Opinion
10 Sep 2025
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion