Health Integration Teams projects being taken forward by CLAHRC West

Six projects relating to the work of Bristol Health Partners Health Integration Teams (HITs) are being taken forward by NIHR CLAHRC West from their 2016 project call.

The National Institute for Health Research Collaboration for Leadership in Applied Health Research and Care West (NIHR CLAHRC West) second call for projects received 29 submissions, and they are now taking forward nine projects in total, and working with seven applicants to develop their proposals further.

The six HIT related projects are:

• Improving extended primary care team response to women with experience of domestic violence and abuse to pharmacies (Sexual Health Improvement (SHIPP) HIT)
• Evaluating the South Gloucestershire opioid analgesics dependency pilot project (Addictions and Integrated Pain Management HITs)
• Reducing avoidable hospital admissions by integrating primary and secondary care at the hospital front door (Avoiding Hospital Admissions (ITHAcA) HIT)
• The Bristol self-harm surveillance register: a platform for improving the care of people who repeatedly self-harm (Improving Care in Self-Harm (STITCH) HIT)
• Understanding the physical harm of combined antipsychotic medication in people with schizophrenia (Psychosis HIT)
• Reducing illicit drug use in female drug dependent street sex workers: a feasibility study (Addictions HIT)

The other projects being taken forward by CLAHRC West as part of this call are are:

• Impact of a primary care standardised admission sheet with National Early Warning Score
• Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire CCG business cases: Improving scope and quality of evidence for patient and economic benefits
• Using capability wellbeing measures to inform outcome-based commissioning at Gloucestershire CCG

The call, which closed in March, prioritised projects that:

• Included work that would facilitate health system integration
• Included work leading to optimal care, particularly aiming to reduce unnecessary investigations or treatments
• Aimed to improve patient outcomes or public health
• Focused on person-centred care or patient involvement and empowerment
• Showed evidence of support from partner organisations

The full breakdown of the call was:

• 29 projects submitted in total
• 9 projects being taken forward by the CLAHRC West team
• 7 applicants working with us to develop their proposals
• 3 signposted to other more relevant organisations
• 9 unsuccessful

NIHR CLAHRC West Director Jenny Donovan said:

“The 2016 call was more focused than our first one, with an emphasis on projects promoting integration and optimal care. It was fascinating and hard work for the Research Advisory Panels to evaluate the 29 submissions. We received applications from many of our partner organisations. As with our first call, the successful projects will now be developed collaboratively with colleagues in the local health and care community in the West. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all those who applied. It is always a pity to have to decline to support some –we wish them well elsewhere. Now we are all really looking forward to working with the nine projects going forward quickly, and the seven more that will develop as part of the programme.”