Optimising community C(E)TRs

  • Research type

    Research Study

  • Full title

    Optimising community C(E)TRs through understanding the experience of people with learning disability and autistic people and investigating their impact on care

  • IRAS ID

    335048

  • Contact name

    Rory Sheehan

  • Contact email

    rory.sheehan@kcl.ac.uk

  • Sponsor organisation

    King's College London

  • Duration of Study in the UK

    2 years, 9 months, 29 days

  • Research summary

    Care (Education) and Treatment Reviews (C(E)TRs) are meetings that take place to ensure that people with learning disability (LD) or autism receive the right support in the community and are only admitted to hospital when there is no alternative. To date, little is known about whether C(E)TRs help to reduce hospital admissions and promote good outcomes, how people with LD, autism, their carers, and professionals feel about C(E)TRs or how they think C(E)TRs can be improved.

    This NIHR-funded project includes three linked studies: 1) Prospective Cohort Study, 2) Qualitative Interview Study, 3) Delphi Panel Study. This project will last 36 months in total.

    In 1) 300 people with LD and autistic people who have a higher likelihood of being admitted to hospital will be recruited via NHS services. Participants (with carers) will have three assessments over 12 months, held either online or in person. We will ask about admissions to hospital, their mental health, quality of life, and what care and treatment they have received. We will investigate if there is a difference in these things between people who have a C(E)TR during the study and people who do not.

    In 2) we will interview people with LD and autistic people, carers, health and social care professionals who have recently had or attended a C(E)TR, recruited via NHS services, professional and/or social networks. We will ask people about their experiences to understand what is working well with C(E)TRs and what needs to change.

    In 3) we will try to find out what aspects of a C(E)TR are most important to people with LD, autistic people, carers, professionals, and other C(E)TR panel members. They will complete an online questionnaire and rate different statements. We will use the results to create a checklist to guide professionals on running high-quality and effective C(E)TRs.

  • REC name

    Yorkshire & The Humber - Leeds West Research Ethics Committee

  • REC reference

    25/YH/0119

  • Date of REC Opinion

    18 Jun 2025

  • REC opinion

    Favourable Opinion