Family member’s experiences of drug and alcohol services.

  • Research type

    Research Study

  • Full title

    Family member’s’ experiences of contact and involvement with Alcohol and Drug Recovery treatment providers in Scotland: A qualitative analysis

  • IRAS ID

    351009

  • Contact name

    Lynda Russell

  • Contact email

    lynda.russell@glasgow.ac.uk

  • Sponsor organisation

    University of Glasgow

  • Duration of Study in the UK

    2 years, 8 months, 9 days

  • Research summary

    The study will explore Family member’s experiences of contact and involvement with a loved one’s Alcohol and Drug treatment provider.
    Methods
    Participants:
    The study will involve family members of people who are currently receiving treatment within Statutory Ayrshire and Arran alcohol and drug services.
    Recruitment:
    Information sessions will be undertaken with staff within the Health and Social Care Partnership and with services that support AFM’S. Participants will be recruited through posters within Statutory Alcohol and Drug services and staff will also ask patients if they have family members who would like to participate.
    Consent
    Participants will be given enough information to consent to participate, in the form of an accessible information sheet. An information sheet will be produced for the person in treatment and informed consent will be gained from them.
    Design of study
    This study will use a qualitative research design. This study will analyse interviews using reflexive thematic analysis
    Data collection
    Participants will undertake an interview, that asks them to reflect on their experiences, as family members, of contact and involvement with a loved one’s alcohol and drug treatment provider.
    Ethical Issues
    Participants will be offered a follow up call to discuss any impact participation has had on their wellbeing and they will be signposted to their GP and relevant support services where needed.
    If participants raise concerns regarding their loved one’s current treatment or other risk related information, then this information will be passed on to the relevant alcohol and drug link worker.

    Practical Applications and Dissemination
    A plain English summary will be distributed to 3rd sector organisations and participants of the study. The study intends to present the research at relevant research conferences and through publication, it is hoped that this can promote further research into this topic.

    The study intends to run from May 2025-February 2026 and will recruit between 6-10 participants.

  • REC name

    West of Scotland REC 1

  • REC reference

    25/WS/0044

  • Date of REC Opinion

    1 May 2025

  • REC opinion

    Further Information Favourable Opinion