iWHELD into Practice
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Implementation evaluation of evidence-based cost-effective training for care home staff to improve Wellbeing and mental HEaLth for care home residents with Dementia and reduce unnecessary sedative medications
IRAS ID
309117
Contact name
Clive Ballard
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Exeter
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 1 months, 0 days
Research summary
WHELD is an evidence-based person-centred training programme which, in 4 clinical trials involving 2349 care home residents with dementia, demonstrated benefits in wellbeing, mental health and a reduction in sedative medications across London and Buckinghamshire. No care home dementia training programme with a clinical trial evidence base of benefit has been successfully implemented in the UK or elsewhere, and rolling-out this training programme nationally would make a massive difference in improving the lives of the most vulnerable people with dementia in the UK.
The proposed programme will introduce WHELD in 75 care homes across 6 regions in England - South West, East Midlands, East of England, Newcastle, North-West and Yorkshire and Humber, combining virtual and in person coaching supported with a digital learning platform.
Throughout the development of WHELD, there has been extensive public and community involvement that will continue in this programme to enrich the findings and ensure they are applicable in real-world settings.
As part of understanding the implementation if WHELD, we will identify key barriers and enablers, ensuring that they are fully understood at each system level using interviews and case studies in up to ten participating care homes (interviews with staff, managers and owners and analysis of care plans). We will also evaluate resident (quality of life, neuropsychiatric symptoms. medications) outcomes in participating care homes with standard measures and cost-effectiveness. Will explore the views of stakeholders regarding the contribution of iWHELD local training, preferred way of delivery (digital, in-person or blended) and potential funding models to enable sustainability of the programme.
An expert advisor group will include care home managers, owners, staff, residents, family carers, researchers and commissioners, and will review the programme’s findings and guide changes to the implementation plan ready for a national roll-out.REC name
South Central - Oxford C Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
22/SC/0189
Date of REC Opinion
8 Jul 2022
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion