Multidisciplinary team assessment of looked after/adopted children

• Research type

  Research Study

• Full title

  Multi-Disciplinary Assessment: Does use of an Observing Team Enrich Clinical Understanding of Looked After and Adopted Children?

• IRAS ID

  260402

• Contact name

  Elspeth Pluckrose

• Contact email

  elspeth.pluckrose@slam.nhs.uk

• Sponsor organisation

  University of Exeter

• Duration of Study in the UK

  1 years, 2 months, 27 days

• Research summary

  This research aims to contribute to knowledge about the processes taking place during assessment of children who have been subjected to cumulative trauma including neglect and abuse.
  Children taken into care are amongst the most disadvantaged and vulnerable members of society and have a higher risk of poor outcomes including mental health difficulties. These children have often experienced repeated traumatic events prior to coming into care and endure a higher prevalence of psychological adversity than even the most socio- economically disadvantaged children living in private households. This early adversity poses critical developmental risks for children’s mental health. However, there are problems in helping these children access mental health services, research on the effectiveness of mental health interventions is limited and identifies deficiencies in the assessment process. This study will focus on the initial assessment of looked after/ adopted children aged between 2 and 11 years. As is usual practice in the team, the multi-disciplinary assessment team will use a one -way screen to observe the assessment. we aim to recruit 10 children to this research. The first individual child session will also be recorded, using a secure NHS system and the team discussion following the child session will be audio recorded. The recording of one child session and one team discussion ( during the assessment of 10 children) is the only change to ordinary clinical practice. Analysis of the videotaped sessions and the recording of the observers will be used to identify ways in which the discussions of the multi-disciplinary team contribute to a fuller understanding of the child’s complex underlying emotional preoccupations and future needs. This study hopes to improve the assessment of the psychological needs of looked after / adopted children.
  

• REC name

  East Midlands - Leicester Central Research Ethics Committee

• REC reference

  20/EM/0074

• Date of REC Opinion

  24 Apr 2020

• REC opinion

  Further Information Favourable Opinion