Parents/carers' experience of CAMHS v.1
Research type
Research Study
Full title
An exploration of parents/carers’ experiences of a Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service.
IRAS ID
159042
Contact name
Claire Browne
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Lancaster University
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
n/a, n/a
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 3 months, 5 days
Research summary
This study will aim to identify and explore the expectations of parents/carers whose child has been referred to a Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS) psychologist. This is of particular importance when providing a service for children but where the parent/carer is often the main attendee, or may have ultimate control over their child’s attendance at sessions and engagement with treatment (Leaf et al., 1996). Previous research has highlighted that congruence between parent/carer expectations and the treatment their child receives is associated with greater attendance and treatment completion (DoH, 2004), and improves therapeutic relationships and engagement (Ronzoni & Dogra, 2011). Despite this, studies have found parents/carers generally do not have a clear understanding of what a CAMHS can, and cannot, provide (Ronzoni & Dogra, 2011). With up to 60% of CAMHS cases terminating treatment prematurely (Kazdin & Mazurick, 1994), it would appear some parents/carers may be dissatisfied with or confused by their initial interactions with CAMHS.
This study will recruit parents/carers whose child has been referred to a clinical psychologist based within South Manchester CAMHS. Participants will attend one semi-structured interview expected to last no more than one hour, during which they will be asked about what they initially expected from their appointments and whether these expectations matched their experiences of attending. In doing so, this study hopes to recommend ways that South Manchester CAMHS can increase service user satisfaction and engagement. For example, the information that participants suggest they would have liked to have known prior to attending the service could be used to create an information leaflet to be sent out with initial appointment letters to newly referred parents/carers. Explaining clearly the role and remit of CAMHS may result in higher level of satisfaction and engagement by to parents/carers, along with reducing drop-outs (DoH, 2004).
REC name
South Central - Berkshire B Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
14/SC/1354
Date of REC Opinion
27 Oct 2014
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion