How can we better demonstrate the impact of CFR volunteers on the ambulance service, and what policy recommendations can we make based on this analysis? (Volunteering in the NHS)
Research type
Research Study
Full title
How can volunteers in the NHS be best supported?
IRAS ID
347570
Contact name
Annette Boaz
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
King's College London
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
NCT06678815, Clinicaltrials.gov
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 6 months, 1 days
Research summary
This study aims to investigate the impact of volunteers in the NHS and increase the evidence base for supporting and developing volunteering to best help patients and services. The research will focus on one relatively established role: Community First Responders (CFR) supporting the ambulance service in English NHS Ambulance Trusts. We will take a mixed methods approach, combining qualitative and quantitative methods to learn more about the effectiveness and wider perceived value of the CFR role from the perspectives of CFRs themselves, other NHS staff and NHS patients who may interact with them.
Our primary Research Question is: How can we maximise the impact of the Community First Responder role?
Secondary Research Questions focus on what we can learn from the Community First Responders to support volunteer roles more widely. In particular: How can policy makers improve the deployment of volunteers? How do staff perceive the support they receive from volunteers (including impact on their workload and morale)? How do patients perceive the support they receive from volunteers? How are volunteers impacting services? What opportunities are there for further developing the volunteer role?
We will work with (up to five) Ambulance Trusts already involved in the National Ambulance Volunteering Dashboard to extract quantitative data from existing management systems. These data will focus on (1) number and demographic characteristics of CFRs; (2) aggregate CFR activity (incidents attended, first on scene, responses times, response outcomes) and (3) CFR incident data (including location, time, category and CFR attendance). From these Trusts we will select 2 for qualitative data collection consisting of documentary analysis and semi-structured interviews with CFRs, NHS staff and patients. This research aims to generate evidence to inform decisions on where policymakers can most efficiently focus future volunteer interventions and how the NHS can best support volunteers in the system.REC name
London - Brighton & Sussex Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
24/PR/1588
Date of REC Opinion
21 Jan 2025
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion