SPRING Qualitative Pilot Evaluation

  • Research type

    Research Study

  • Full title

    SPRING Qualitative Pilot Evaluation Study

  • IRAS ID

    362490

  • Contact name

    Kate Button

  • Contact email

    buttonk@cardiff.ac.uk

  • Sponsor organisation

    Cardiff University

  • Duration of Study in the UK

    0 years, 5 months, 30 days

  • Research summary

    People who have a shoulder replacement operation can have mixed experiences. The support before and after the operation can vary a lot. For some people, this can leave them feeling unprepared for the surgery and how to manage their shoulder afterwards, fearful of moving their arm and/or unsure of how to start using their arm in usual day to day activities.

    The SPRING project aims to develop and test two new types of personalised support for people having a shoulder replacement:
    - Prehabilitation, for people before their surgery to prepare them for what is ahead.
    - Early rehabilitation, for people after their surgery, to help them to adapt to day-to-day life.

    The first phase of the SPRING study has begun (see linked application). We are working together with a community of people with shoulder replacement and healthcare professionals, to develop two new support interventions (one for before and one after a shoulder replacement operation). This process is called ‘co-design’ whereby the experiences and needs of people guided the development of two prehabilitation and early rehabilitation interventions.

    In this present study, people experiencing shoulder replacement will receive one of the two newly co-designed support interventions. These interventions will include access to SPRING resources, and one-to-one sessions with a healthcare professional. People taking part will then be invited to attend an interview to share their experiences of the support intervention they received. Healthcare professionals will be invited to a focus group, an interview or asked to complete an online survey about their experiences of delivery the interventions.

    The feedback from both groups will be used to further adapt the new support interventions. This is an important stage in the SPRING study as it will help us understand how the interventions were received, and what training and support is best for healthcare professionals.

  • REC name

    Wales REC 1

  • REC reference

    25/WA/0331

  • Date of REC Opinion

    24 Nov 2025

  • REC opinion

    Further Information Favourable Opinion