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If you are a researcher looking for poster or presentation templates, logos, advice and tips then this is the page for you Reports, toolkits and support Need help with publication wording? Read more Need an ARC Wessex logo? ARC LOGO SQUARE for DARK BACKGROUND DOWNLOAD ARC LOGO SQUARE NAVY DOWNLOAD ARC LOGO WHITE DOWNLOAD ARC LOGO SQUARE BLACK DOWNLOAD ARC LOGO for dark background DOWNLOAD ARC LOGO NAVY DOWNLOAD ARC LOGO SQUARE WHITE DOWNLOAD ARC LOGO BLACK DOWNLOAD Powerpoint Arial font Button Powerpoint Inclusive font Button Policy Briefs Medicine Optimisation and Deprescribing in Older People Strengthening Community Based Falls Prevention in England ARC Wessex Public Policy Fellowship Report - Public Policy Fellows M Myall & E Radcliffe Toolkits Domestic Abuse and Life Limiting Illness - DALLI toolkit Wessex Implementation Toolkit evidence brief Evidence briefs Evidence-briefs: short summaries and overviews of research addressing the key questions in Workforce and Health Systems December 2025 - Negotiating competing priorities in nurse shift scheduling Globally, healthcare systems are losing nursing staff due to a poor work-life balance, among other job factors. Shift scheduling is a point of potential and actual conflict between organisations and nursing staff because of their differing priorities. Through interviews with nursing staff and managers, this evidence brief reports the findings of a qualitative study that reveals that collaborative and compromising approaches are the most effective ways to prevent conflicts from escalating. By reasonably meeting nurses’ preferences through these approaches, organisations can support both individual well-being and organisational goals. Conversely, rigid policies and competing approaches often lead to conflict, low morale and turnover. May 2025 - Is the quality of maternity care related to the number of midwives and their workload? Maternity staffing is variable from day to day and between organisations; there are also fluctuations in the demand for care. This evidence brief outlines the quantitative evidence on the relationship between staffing levels and the quality of maternity care, including four new studies based on existing NHS data in England. Maternity services need to provide safe, effective and person-centred care for women and families. When staffing is below expected or workload is high, it is important to understand the consequences across a wide range of patient outcomes. Download the full report here (https://eprints.soton.ac.uk/502834/2/25_04_Midwife_staffing_and_care_quality_Eprints_18_9_25.pdf) March 2025 - What is the evidence to support the use of Birthrate Plus® to guide safe staffing in maternity services? The Ockenden review of maternity services at the Shrewsbury and Telford NHS Trust highlighted the urgent need to ensure adequate staffing levels in maternity care and called for a review of the feasibility and accuracy of the Birthrate Plus tool and associated methodologies. Birthrate Plus® is a system that is used to guide workforce planning for midwifery, informing decisions about the number of midwives to employ in order to maintain safe and high quality care (establishment setting). In this review we consider the available evidence to support the use of Birthrate Plus based on a recently published systematic scoping review. Read February 2025 | eHealth literacy and the use of NHS111 online. What does it mean for accessing and using urgent care? Many health care systems, including the NHS, use online services to support the delivery of care, a trend which was accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Patients are increasingly encouraged to access and use online health services such as the NHS 111 online urgent care service, which assesses, triages and signposts users to other health services where necessary. Services like NHS 111 online require people to have sufficient motivation, knowledge of health and of services, and to be able to use digital technologies (‘eHealth literacy’). Whilst digital technologies may seem almost ubiquitous in many aspects of daily life, it is estimated that many millions in the UK do not go online or lack the skills to use the Internet effectively. The push towards accessing care online may exacerbate health inequalities due to variations in peoples’ level of eHealth literacy. However, the relationship between eHealth literacy and the use of urgent online services such as NHS 111 online is not clear. This Evidence Brief describes the findings of a two-year study undertaken by the University of Oxford and the University of Southampton. It summarises the findings of a survey that measured eHealth literacy and preferences of users and non-users of NHS 111 online. July 2024 - What do we know about frailty in the adult population in England? Frailty is an aging-related syndrome of physiological decline, which results in reduced ability of a person to recover from minor health problems. It is common in older adults and increases the likelihood of hospital admissions and a move to residential care. Services supporting older patients with moderate or severe frailty have been developed across the healthcare sector. However, there is a lack of research describing how frailty evolves within the whole adult population and its impact on health services. In 2017, NHS England introduced routine frailty identification for patients aged 65 and over in General Practice, using tools such as electronic Frailty Index (eFI). As well as improving patient care, use of the eFI enables large-scale population studies to explore the epidemiology of frailty and inform future health service provision. This Evidence Brief describes the results of research that analysed a large primary care dataset of adults in England to understand how common frailty is in adults aged 50 and older, how quickly it progresses and the consequent impact on the use of health services. March 2024 - Is it cost-effective to deploy more nurses on hospital wards? Currently the National Health Service (NHS), in common with many health systems around the world, faces shortages of registered nurses. Common sense and a huge body of evidence suggest this is far from ideal to deliver high-quality patient care. In acute general hospitals, when there are fewer registered nurses, more patient care is missed, quality is reduced and patient outcomes are worse. But fixing the problem is likely to be expensive and it is important to ask if this is the best way to spend money in a resource-limited system. Are there alternatives to using registered nurses? In this Evidence Brief, we summarise a recent systematic review answering whether investing in registered nurses represents value for money, and considers whether using support staff with lower qualification levels might provide a more cost-effective solution to nurse shortages. November 2023: Introducing the Professional Judgement Framework to guide nurse staffing decisions Working out how many nursing staff are needed to provide safe care on a hospital ward is complicated, as many factors affect the amount of work. Many tools are available to help estimate the work and the staff needed, but no single tool captures everything, meaning that using professional judgement remains important. Nonetheless, numbers of nursing staff generated by tools may be trusted more than decisions based on professional judgement, which can be seen as too subjective. Providing a framework to help guide new managers in using professional judgement and to help experienced managers justify their thinking may help overcome this challenge. This Evidence Brief describes the development of a Professional Judgement Framework to guide nurse staffing decisions, based on our safe staffing research and nurse workforce expert guidance. September 2022 - How do long shifts, overtime, and higher patient load influence activities that support good nursing practice? How do long shifts, overtime, and higher patient load influence activities that support good nursing practice? Nursing workforce factors like shift length, workload, and use of overtime are known to influence care quality and staff wellbeing. But to what extent do these factors influence other aspects of nursing work - such as care coordination and continuous professional development? We used data from a large national survey of nurses to see if working long shifts, overtime, and having higher patient loads influenced nurses’ opportunities for completing activities that support good practice. Read evidence brief May 2022 - What makes it difficult for patients to ask for help in hospital? What makes it difficult for patients to ask for help in hospital? Failures in fundamental care of hospital patients can have serious consequences, including patients dying unnecessarily. NHS policy and nursing theory emphasise shared decision making by staff and patients. However they do not consider what prevents nurses providing care as they would wish, nor the difficulties patients can face in alerting staff to missed care. Researchers from the University of Southampton interviewed 20 patients and six focus group members about their experiences of involvement in fundamental care decisions in hospitals, including whether they raised missed care with staff and if not, why not. This evidence brief presents our findings, taken from our recent paper. Download evidence brief March 2022 - Are poor experiences on postnatal wards linked to staffing levels? Are poor experiences on postnatal wards linked to staffing levels? Experts are growing increasingly concerned about the sustainability of the midwifery workforce, with unfilled vacancies in the thousands, an ageing workforce with many taking early retirement, and difficulty retaining newly qualified midwives. Staffing studies have focussed on the quality of care in labour, with fewer studies looking at staffing levels in relation to postnatal care. This Evidence Brief describes a cross-sectional analysis of women’s responses to the Maternity Survey 2018 linked to midwifery staffing levels in each Trust. Researchers at the University of Southampton aimed to understand whether the experience of care on postnatal wards varies according to the number of midwives available. They have focused on experiences of postnatal care while in hospital, as this is an area where families have expressed dissatisfaction. Download evidence brief August 2021 - How long do nurses take to measure patients’ vital signs, and does it matter? How long do nurses take to measure patients’ vital signs, and does it matter? Patients in hospital may be at risk of unexpected deterioration. Monitoring patients’ vital signs, for example blood pressure and heart rate, ensures that any deterioration can be spotted early. This means that monitoring patients’ vital signs is an important part of safe patient care, and, if carried out effectively, has the potential to save many patients’ lives. However, previous studies have been unable to specify the workload this monitoring activity generates for nursing staff. This makes it difficult to plan how many staff are needed to monitor patients. Researchers at the University Of Southampton, University of Portsmouth and University of Oxford have teamed up to measure and estimate the time and workload associated with measuring patients’ vital signs, and this evidence brief reports what they found. Download evidence brief June 2021 - What keep nurses nursing? What keeps nurses in nursing? There is a shortage of registered nurses across the world, including in the UK. As demand for care increases, we need to find ways of recruiting more nurses and retaining those already in the workforce. But what makes some nurses decide to leave their jobs, or the profession altogether, and others stay? Understanding workplace factors that influence these decisions could help employers and policymakers to create the conditions needed to keep nurses in the profession. In this Evidence Brief, we bring together the key findings from a scoping review of reports and research papers to summarise what is known about factors that influence nurse retention, and consider what more needs to be done to develop effective retention strategies. Download evidence brief May 2021 - What is the relationship between midwifery staffing levels and outcomes? Staffing levels have been implicated in cases of adverse maternity events, near misses and sub-optimal outcomes such as unwell new-borns or still births. Care that is missed due to high workload can affect the detection of deterioration in mothers and babies, and delay appropriate management. A national shortage of midwives has resulted in increased reliance on support workers but the possible effect of skill-mix changes on outcomes has not been assessed. This Evidence Brief describes a systematic scoping review to explore evidence on the association between inpatient midwifery staffing levels, skill mix and outcomes for mothers and babies. Researchers at the University of Southampton aimed to understand the amount and strength of the available evidence, the direction of relationships established, and to highlight gaps for future research. Download evidence brief March 2021 - Are nurses wasting their time on the road? Automated planning using Operational Research methods can save both planning and travelling time. Researchers at the Universities of Southampton and Exeter are working to close the gap between these methods and the practicalities of home care planning. This Evidence Brief draws attention to the difficulty of finding the best route and schedule. Download evidence brief October 2020 - Burnout in Nursing: what have we learnt and what do we still need to know? Burnout in Nursing: what have we learnt and what do we still need to know? Recent health workforce crises, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, have meant that burnout has often become a ‘buzzword’ to represent stress, extreme tiredness, and a willingness to quit one’s job. Several studies in nursing focus on burnout as an indicator of adverse work environments or staff characteristics. Nonetheless, what burnout is - what aspects contribute to its development and what the effect is for nurses, healthcare organisations, or their patients - is often overlooked. This evidence brief describes a review, undertaken by researchers at the University of Southampton, of the research examining relationships between burnout and work-related variables. We sought to determine what is known (and not known) about the causes and consequences of burnout in nursing, and whether these relationships confirm or dispute Maslach’s theory of burnout. Download evidence brief September 2020 - What do we know about the Safer Nursing Care Tool? Many studies of registered nurse staffing in hospitals have shown an association between higher levels and better patient outcomes and care quality. Systems for determining the number of nursing staff needed on wards exist in abundance. However, research Download evidence brief August 2020 - Making sense of urgent care: how and why do people use health services? Urgent care typically describes healthcare for non-life threatening conditions requiring prompt attention (‘same day’ or within 24 hours). In England, urgent care services have proliferated partly to divert people from attending overcrowded emergency departments but also to address policy concerns of patient choice and improved access to care. Download evidence brief July 2020 - Magnet Hospitals – are they better places for staff? Job-related stress and burnout are prevalent amongst healthcare staff; in particular, nurses in the UK have one of the highest levels of burnout in any country in Europe. Tackling this problem is a high priority in the UK and in other countries where shortages of healthcare professionals are affecting healthcare delivery. ‘Magnet’ hospitals are reputed to attract and retain staff, and to achieve better outcomes for patients. But what do we know about whether Magnet hospitals are ‘better’ places for staff to work, and whether they improve staff wellbeing? Download evidence brief February 2020 - What difference have safe staffing policies made to hospitals in the NHS? The Francis inquiries in 2010 and 2013 highlighted nurse staffing as a patient safety factor contributing to the care failings identified at Mid Staffordshire NHS Trust. The reports and government response led to the development of national ‘safe staffing’ policy. Download evidence brief

f06fb2ad-c8c9-436f-982c-c278b7185585 ENRICHER – involvEment iN the cRiminal justice system & the ImpaCt on women’s Health dorsEt & hampshiRe Chief Investigator Professor Julie Parkes Professor in Public Health Head of School of Primary Care, Population Sciences and Medical Education Faculty of Medicine University of Southampton, South Academic Block, Southampton General Hospital, Tremona Road, Dr Emma Plugge Associate Professor in Public Health School of Primary Care, Population Sciences and Medical Education Faculty of Medicine University of Southampton, Co-Investigators Dr Donna Arrondelle , Research Fellow, University of Southampton Dr Naomi Gadian, Public Health Specialist Registrar, University of Southampton Donna Gipson, Director EP:IC Consultants Ltd, West Malling, Kent Dr James Hall , Associate Professor of Educational Psychology, University of Southampton Paula Harriott , Head of Prison Engagement, Prison Reform Trust Professor Kathleen Kendall , Professorial Fellow of Sociology as Applied to Medicine, University of Southampton Dr Sara Morgan , Associate Professor in Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Southampton Professor James Raftery , Faculty of Medicine, University of Southampton, Dr Lucy Wainwright , Director of Research, EP:IC Consultants Ltd, West Malling, Kent Starts: 1st April 2023 Ends: 30th September 2024 Summary This study will look at what happens to women’s health and wellbeing when they are imprisoned. The imprisoned women will be women from Dorset and we will compare any changes to changes in women from Hampshire who go to Hope Street instead of going to prison. Hope Street is a charity-funded alternative to prison, available only to women from Hampshire; women live in special accommodation in the community where they are secure and where they are able to access a range of health and social care services. Women who go to prison are often from the poorest communities and they often have many different health problems, particularly relating to their mental health. These health problems are often related to their crimes and so by making sure they get the services they need, this will help their health improve and benefit wider society by helping tackle crime. This study will ensure that this new and unique information is available to those who plan and deliver health services locally. The Southampton research team on this project are carrying out a 5-year evaluation of Hope Street. This means they can use the data that they are collecting as part of this evaluation on the health of women at Hope Street to compare to women from Dorset who are imprisoned. Researchers will collect information on the health and social care needs of the two groups of women at the same time intervals over a one-year period and in the same way. We will then compare this information to look for differences. We will interview the women so that we understand what their experiences are like in prison or Hope Street, and why there might be differences. We will also look at the cost of their care. The information from our study will help the professionals who plan health and social care services and also those who work in criminal justice settings such as prison or probation. Women with experience of imprisonment are part of the eight-person study team. They have helped design the project and will be working with Hope Street women to train them in research. They will also be important in spreading the word about the study. This will enable us to reach not just academic audiences and policy makers through publishing in journals or presenting at research conferences, but also people with lived experience of imprisonment and charities that work in this area. Informing a wide range of people will be important in ensuring that the findings from this study are acted on.

07abb52d-c8db-43f8-85d4-b392467d6ada Developing training for person-centred care: adapting the Chat & Plan for use in domiciliary care Chief Investigator: Dr Teresa Corbett, Visiting Research Fellow, School of Health Sciences , University of Southampton and Senior Lecturer in Psychology, Solent University. Co-Investigators: Professor Jackie Bridges, Professor of Older People's Care, School of Health Sciences, University of Southampton Dr Nicola Andrews, Research Fellow - NIHR ARC Wessex , School of Health Sciences, University of Southampton Cindy Brooks, Research Fellow - NIHR ARC Wessex , School of Health Sciences, University of Southampton Dr Pippa Collins, Advanced Clinical Practitioner, Post Doc Research Fellow – NIHR ARC Wessex, School of Health Sciences, University of Southampton Collaborating organisations: Hampshire County Council – Maria Hayward, Learning & Development Service Manager and Implementation Champion Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council – Alison Pearman, Service Improvement Manager Wessex AHSN – Cheryl Davies, Senior Programme Manager (Healthy Ageing) Skills for Care – Debbie Boys, Locality Manager – Hampshire, Southampton, Portsmouth and Isle of Wight Purple Lilac Healthcare - Violet Chatindo, Registered Manager Right at home – Andrew Davis, Registered Manager Partners in Care – Kate Blake, Manager Start date: 1/6/23 End date: 1/9/24 Aim of the research The aim of this research is to adapt a communication tool for use by social care workers and to find out what type of information we should include in a training package for social care workers providing domiciliary care (e.g., practical help and support in the community) to support its use. This study will help us to make a training course that we can try out with social care workers in future research. Background to the research We made a tool to help healthcare staff to talk to older adults about their needs. This tool has 8 steps that should be followed in a discussion with people about their needs and personal goals. However, the tool might need to be changed if we want to use it in domiciliary or other social care settings instead of healthcare (e.g., the NHS) settings. In this research, we want to see if we need to change the tool so that it can be used by social care workers. We also want to find out about how we might be able to train social care workers to improve how they talk to older adults about their needs. Design and methods used We will study existing courses, workshops and training so that we can find out more about how we should plan our training. We will also interview social care workers to find out more about what they do in their role. We will ask them to tell us what they think of the tool, and what changes we might need to make to it. Up to 15 social care workers will take part. We will make a draft of what will be included in the training. Experts will discuss the training and we will make changes based on what they say. We will interview some more social care workers to find out what they like or do not like about the training plan we have made. Patient, public and community involvement Members of the public have been part of the study so far in many ways. They have helped us to make the tool that we will ask social care workers about. We will also work with experts in social care who have agreed to help us to in a number of ways. These include: · Looking over content and letting us know what they think. · Coming to project meetings. · Helping to plan the study. · Looking over study information that we will send to participants. · Helping us to make sense of the research findings. Dissemination We will share our findings at conferences and at events with audiences who are interested in our study. We will also write about our findings for academic and public audiences via Communications channels (e.g. relevant websites, social media, newsletters). We will also share findings with those working in social care, e.g., via domiciliary care forums (each local authority has one) and with Learning and development teams in local authorities. What did we find out? An adapted version of the CHAT&PLAN is viewed as feasible to use in homecare settings. We needed to change some of the language to make it more relevant to homecare settings and improve clarity. There is an appetite and need for co-designed, evidence-based, person-centred care training in homecare settings. Much of the existing training on this topic is not specific to homecare workers and may not always apply to their role. CHAT&PLAN provides an overview of skills that should be used flexibly, depending on the needs and preferences of the service user. The training will emphasise that it may not work well for all service users, and further communication skills training is required alongside this course. We identified key factors we would need to consider in the development of a training package: 1.Teaching style and methods should be practical to support skills development. Training should involve learning from each other and reflection. 2.The training must be viewed as relevant to the homecare workers and be pitched at a level that is clear and easy to understand. 3.Buy-in from managers, organisations and service users is required for homecare workers to attend sessions, and then apply skills in practice. What did we do with this new knowledge? •Study summary was shared with supporting organisations and participants •Systematic review paper has been submitted to PLOS One Where next? We did not have time in this study to test out the training with homecare workers. This is important as we want to know how the training works in practice. We will need to test the package to see what homecare workers and managers think of the entire set of materials and methods used in the training. We will then apply for funding to see whether the training is acceptable and feasible in practice and improves the quality of person-centred care provided by homecare workers.

d9f3030e-3acc-4dc2-87bc-c01e65471d56 FLEXI: Falls management exercise programme led by NIHR ARC East Midlands working with NIHR ARC Greater Manchester and NIHR ARC South West Peninsula The FLEXI Study (FaLls EXercise Implementation) Lay Summary Falling can cause injury, pain, loss of confidence and independence. This is undesirable for the individual and their families, and places significant demands on health and social care services. Falls are not inevitable. By improving an individual’s strength and balance, alongside skills to help getting up from a fall (should this happen), the likelihood of a fall occurring or having damaging consequences, such as a long lie on the floor, can be minimised. The Falls Management Exercise (FaME) programme is a group-based, face-to-face, six-month exercise programme specifically aimed at improving the strength and balance of people aged 65 and over. Research has shown that FaME results in fewer falls, improved confidence, and reduced fear-of-falling. Despite this, FaME is still not available everywhere across England. More needs to be understood about how best to increase its availability and ensure high quality delivery. To improve our understanding of this, we previously studied FaME’s set-up, delivery and quality in the East Midlands. We learnt a lot about how to get FaME running and showed that the programmes worked outside of a research setting. Using learning from the East Midlands, we developed a guide for implementing FaME called the implementation toolkit . This evidence-based toolkit contains all the information needed to set up and run a FaME programme, from making the initial business case to promoting it to participants. “FaME gives value. We know it's great value for money. We know it works in terms of it reduces falls, it increases physical activity, improves function, improves confidence. So many different benefits” What have we discovered? What works to foster (encourage) the adoption (initial decision to choose or take up something) and spread (roll out over a large area) of The Falls Management Exercise (FaME) programme ? Using implementation frameworks, we successfully identified key barriers and enablers of adoption, implementation and spread of the Falls Management Exercise (FaME) programme across the three localities. We found that the adoption, implementation and spread of FaME into community settings is complex and faces multiple health system challenges. In order for the FaME programme to be chosen as a community fall prevention intervention by commissioners, the programme must be able to demonstrate how successful it is in reducing falls for older adults (this is often determined by internal service evaluation). The programme was also required to fit the needs of those receiving the intervention, for example, FaME was primarily provided where there was a growing, aging population in need of fall prevention interventions. The spread of the FaME programme within organisations and into new regional areas was dependant on the input of commissioners passionate about fall prevention. Commissioners were required to support this roll out and provide funding, whilst also ensuring that there was a sufficient expert instructor workforce available to deliver FaME. The programmes were further required to be monitored regularly to evidence how successfully each programme was in reducing rate and risk of falls for older adults receiving the intervention. This was often the role of the postural stability instructor. Future funding is required to build in paid time for this to ensure that programme outcomes can support future funding cycles as often instructors are funded on an hourly basis. Does FaME work in the real world, how is it adapted (altered or changed), and does it reach the intended audience (older adults at risk of falling)? The collection of routine class data across three regions in England demonstrated that FaME was associated with benefits for participants at 12 and 24 weeks of the programme. Those benefits included improved balance and mobility and reduced falls. Programmes that provided higher ‘dose’ (i.e. ran over 24 weeks rather than 12 weeks) found that older adults experienced greater improvements in balance and mobility and were less likely to be concerned about falling again. What works to maintain the quality (the standard) and fidelity (how well something is reproduced) of the FaME programme over time? One of the key findings of the FLEXI study was that sites demonstrated a lack of clarity of essential components or key ingredients of the FaME intervention. This influenced both implementation and the providers' ability to assess adherence. The need for an understanding of central components was also clear in understanding delivery adherence and, therefore, the ability to evaluate programmes for their effectiveness. At the point of implementation, it became apparent that commissioners and managers are prioritising aspects of the intervention, with these decisions mediated by knowledge (or lack ) of the intervention, economic culture and organisational priorities. Adaptation of Evidence Based Interventions is key to improving their fit in a new context, however, essential components should not be adapted as intervention effectiveness cannot be guaranteed. We have proposed a new framework of implementation fidelity, that shows that mediators were key both in the implementation and delivery of complex interventions, as well as the mediating more of global mediators. Understanding of essential components is paramount at the point of implementation in order to ensure fidelity is implemented, maintained, and assessed. We suggest that complex interventions have a standard of evaluation (based on core components) and insights on fidelity/value negotiations within toolkits. We highlight that local fidelity evaluation is key to standardisation across programmes and delivery. What difference does this knowledge make? We have worked collaboratively with the Health Innovation Networks (HINs), local Integrated Care Systems and Combined Authorities to study ‘spread in action’. As a result, in one of our areas (Devon), where we have applied HINs spread methodology, we have seen a near trebling of available programmes from 13 to 41 (without intervention costs from the study). The study has highlighted the need for an increased frequency of local Quality Assurance to monitor delivery (instructors given the opportunity to observe each other deliver and provide constructive feedback). This has improved the quality of delivery. We have also hosted Greater Manchester-wide collaborative events, which resulted in quality improvement initiatives relating to FaME provision across GM and have established the National FaME Implementation Team (N-FIT) which is now primed and ready to work in new areas to support spread, using the methodologies we have tested. We are refining our implementation toolkit, which is ready to be tested in new areas and we want to refine and improve our quality assurance framework and costing tool using data collected from the study to support future FaME provision. What next? Our future planned work aims to address: Gaps in our understanding about what works to reach underserved communities in relation to FaME participation. We are currently working to explore the provision of FaME in ‘neighbourhood’ areas where there are good examples of reach into underserved groups (e.g. minority ethnic groups, male participants and socioeconomically deprived areas). We are conducting case-study research methodologies to further investigate this aim. The original FLEXI project highlighted that the monitoring and evaluation of programme outcomes are not captured well by local areas delivering programmes. We are, therefore, now developing a more structured evaluation framework for sites to use a legacy of the project. New data on the costs of implementing FaME have been determined and we would love to use these figures to update the national return on investment tool for FaME, developed by Public Health England and York University, to see if this improves the economic case for FaME roll-out. Lastly, we have also tested quality assurance tools for FaME and can see that improvements can be made to increase the tools’ internal and external validity. Moving forward, we would like to refine our preferred tool using academic methods to test this in new areas. FLEXI output links digital .pdf Download PDF • 616KB We would like to thank: Principle Investigator: Dr Elizabeth Orton Team members: Professor Denise Kendrick , Professor Stephen Timmons , Professor Carol Coupland , Professor Pip Logan , Professor Tahir Masud , Professor Vicki Goodwin , Professor Claire Hulme , Professor Chris Todd , Dr Helen Hawley-Hague , Dr Paul Wilson, Professor Dawn Skelton , Mrs Margaret Beetham Study researchers and study staff: Dr Fay Manning Dr Jodi Ventre Dr Aseel Mahmoud Dr Basharat Hussain Dr Michael Taylor Dr Grace Brough Dr Amar Shukla Dr Robert Vickers Ms Tina Patel Study public contributors: Mary Murphy Margaret Beetham PPIE Workshop participants from Greater Manchester, Devon and East Midlands Our Partners: NIHR ARC Greater Manchester , NIHR ARC South West Peninsula , Health Innovation South West , Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents, Health Innovation Manchester, Later Life Training, Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust, Leicester-shire and Rutland Sport. Research sites: Devon Integrated Care System (ICS), Manchester combined authority, Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland ICS, Derby and Derbyshire ICS Starts: 1/10/2021 Ends: 30/9/2025 Lay summary below Falling can cause injury, pain, loss of confidence and independence. This is undesirable for the individual and their families, and places significant demands on health and social care services. Falls are not inevitable. By improving an individual’s strength and balance, alongside skills to help getting up from a fall (should this happen), the likelihood of a fall occurring or having damaging consequences, such as a long lie on the floor, can be minimised. The Falls Management Exercise (FaME) programme is a group-based, face-to-face, six-month exercise programme specifically aimed at improving the strength and balance of people aged 65 and over. Research has shown that FaME results in fewer falls, improved confidence, and reduced fear-of-falling. Despite this, FaME is still not available everywhere across England. More needs to be understood about how best to increase its availability and ensure high quality delivery. To improve our understanding of this, we previously studied FaME’s set-up, delivery and quality in the East Midlands. We learnt a lot about how to get FaME running and showed that the programmes worked outside of a research setting. Using learning from the East Midlands, we developed a guide for implementing FaME called the implementation toolkit . This evidence-based toolkit contains all the information needed to set up and run a FaME programme, from making the initial business case to promoting it to participants. We now want to use this toolkit to see if FaME can be made more available in two new, and very different, regions: Greater Manchester and Devon, and assess whether FaME works in these populations too, particularly if adaptations are made because of Coronavirus. We aim to: 1) Understand how best to increase availability of FaME in two new areas and assess the role that the toolkit plays in this. Using the toolkit we will work with local experts to promote FaME to organisations that decide what health services should be funded locally. 2) Study the delivery of FaME in the new areas and see if programmes work in these populations by measuring improvements in participating individuals. 3) Test ways of maintaining the quality of FaME programmes over time. Working with Later Life Training, a national not-for-profit organisation with expertise in FaME, we will measure the quality of programmes and test what works to make them better. We will use this information to improve the implementation toolkit and develop plans to support national implementation of FaME. Publications Factors influencing fall prevention programmes across three regions of the UK: the challenge of implementing and spreading the Falls Management Exercise (FaME) programme in a complex landscape | Age and Ageing | Oxford Academic https://vimeo.com/616877571

98ea6e39-72b8-439c-baa8-0843050c271b ADOPTED: SPLENDID Social Prescribing for people to Live ENjoyably with Dementia/memory problems In Daily life Research lead: Professor George Christopher Fox, University of East Anglia ARC Wessex team: Dr Euan Sadler, University of Southampton, Dr Katherine Bradbury, University of Southampton. Partner organisations: NHS Norfolk and Waveney CCG, University of Hull, University of Nottingham, University of Exeter, King's College London, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, Meaningful Measures Ltd. Start: 01/05/2022 End: 30/04/2027 What is the problem? Nearly one million people in the UK will be living with the affects of dementia by 2030 including poor well-being and quality of life. Social prescribing is a prescription of activities for a person to use to link with others and undertake something they might enjoy, this could be a walking or singing group, flower arranging class, visit to a museum or putting them in touch with other people to help them feel better. People meet with staff called Link- Workers, who have a conversation with them to help them think about what they enjoy and might help. The Link Worker might then introduce them to a group or activity or support them to find information to make links. Family members can be involved too. Research shows social prescribing has better effects than just taking medicine and is happening more often. This study (called SPLENDID) aims to understand how we ensure social prescribing is useful and helpful to people with dementia. What we will do SPLENDID researchers will talk with people with dementia, family carers and staff working in social prescribing to understand what people want, what works well and what could be improved. We will use this to design, with people with dementia, what looks like the best way for social prescribing with people with dementia. We will create some tools (online and face-to-face) to help workers and people with dementia talk and think together about what might help them. We will test it with a small group of people to see if it helps and look at what training Link- Workers need to offer the best support for people with dementia and their families. We then decide if this should be taken forward and tested in a larger study to see if it improves peoples’ well-being and is value for money. Working with patients and carers Our team met 8 people with dementia and 8 family carers to design this study. We have 2 co-researchers (Mr Rook and Mrs Bingham) who are living with dementia. 150 people with dementia were surveyed to see what social prescribing is currently being offered and found people were doing a range of outdoor and indoor activities, some with family which they enjoyed and found helpful. People with dementia and carers will be on our Committees, and several dementia charities support this work. Dissemination Our website will offer free resources put together with people with dementia and carers. Our findings will be shared locally and nationally using links we have with universities, clinical experts, press, social media, workshops with people who commission and provide. NIHR ARC East of England study site Publications Social prescribing for people living with dementia (PLWD) and their carers: what works, for whom, under what circumstances and why – protocol for a complex intervention systematic review | BMJ Open

NIHR & ARC templates This is the place to find the template documents for presentations, posters, letters etc as well as the NIHR and ARC logos. NIHR 2025 Letterhead_template arial.docx NIHR 2026_PowerPoint_Arial.pptx Please note the NIHR does not provide a bespoke NIHR ARC Wessex logo. All ARCs use the single none regionalised NIHR Applied Research Collaboration logo. Any questions contact arcwessex@soton.ac.uk NIHR Research Poster_template-2.pptx Copy of NIHR brand toolkit ARC logos.pptx Below is a general NIHR ARC logo to right click and copy. The Copy of NIHR Brand toolkit ARC Logos has all the logos that you can download ARC Video Teams/Zoom background

Glossary of Terms Accessibility Accessibility is about making sure that things can be accessed and used by as many people as possible. This includes people with impaired vision, motor difficulties, cognitive impairments, learning disabilities and deafness or impaired hearing. APIF The ARC Public Involvement Forum - this is our strategic PPIEP group. It is composed of Theme Public Advisors, the PPIEP team and staff links for each research theme. ARC funded or ARC supported studies Our research may be directly financed by our ARC ('ARC funded') or we may provide support, such as by providing staff resource ('ARC supported'). ARC or Applied Research Collaboration ARCs support applied health and care research that responds to, and meets, the needs of local populations and local health and care systems. They are funded by the NIHR. There are 15 funded across England. ARC Partnership Board This is a decision-making body for ARC Wessex. It meets quarterly to set priorities and directly contribute to, support delivery and monitor performance of our programme. The board membership has two public representatives. BRC or Biomedical Research Centre BRCs bring together academics and clinicians to translate lab-based scientific breakthroughs into potential new treatments, diagnostics and medical technologies. There are 20 NIHR funded BRCs in England. Our Strategic Lead for PPI/E also leads PPI for the Southampton BRC. Our researchers also work closely with staff in the BRC. CCF or Clinical Commissioning Facility They manage and administer the ARC funding scheme. We report to them annually and will have to report our progress against this strategy. CLAHRC or Collaborations for Leadership in Applied Health Research and Care This is the term for the organisations which preceded the ARCs. They were also funded by the NIHR and had a similar function. This funding scheme closed in Sept 2019 when the ARC scheme succeeded them. Communications and Partnership Manager This role has responsibility for shaping and delivering our communications, and supporting productive relationships across our partners. This post is currently filled by Jamie Stevenson. CRF or Clinical Research Facility CRFs are purpose built facilities in NHS hospitals where researchers can deliver early-phase and complex studies. There are 22 NIHR funded CRFs in England. Our Strategic Lead for PPI/E also leads PPI for the Southampton CRF. Engagement Where information and knowledge is provided and shared with the public. Equality impact assessments The equality impact assessment is a systematic and evidence-based tool, which enables us to consider the likely impact of work on different groups of people. They help ensure that activities do not discriminate against anyone and that, where possible, we promote equality of opportunity. Executive Leadership Group This group operationalises strategy, policy and the research programme. The group is led by the ARC Director; the Strategic Lead for PPI/E and Communications and the Partnership Manager are members. Fellowship Fellowships are a type of research funding which are awarded to individuals. For example, a fellowship may enable a person to complete the next stage of their academic career training. Higher Education Institutes This term describes any institution that provides education post-secondary education level, for example Universities. INCLUDE This guidance provides a suggested framework of questions to guide the deliberations of funders, researchers and delivery teams as they design and assess clinical research proposals to improve inclusion of under-served groups in clinical research. Read more . INVOLVE INVOLVE was a national coordinating centre for public involvement in health and care. It was funded by the National Institute for Health Research between 1996-2020. A new Centre for Engagement and Dissemination aims to build on the work of INVOLVE. Lifelab A unique, state-of-the-art teaching laboratory dedicated to improving adolescent health by giving school students opportunities to learn first-hand the science behind the health messages. Logic modelling and theory of change A theory of change is a description of why a particular way of working will be effective, showing how change happens in the short, medium and long term to achieve its intended impact. Logic models are a way to graphically represent this theory. Our Strategic Lead for PPI/E supervises a PhD student who has developed a PPI/E planning and impact tool, underpinned by the theory of change and a logic model. We aim to use this to capture impacts of the ARC PPI/E programme. Manager for PPI/E This role has responsibility for shaping and delivering our PPI/E strategy. They also lead PPI/E for other NIHR organisations. The post is currently filled by Annemarie Henkinson. Microsoft Accessibility Checker A free tool available in Office 365. It finds most accessibility issues and explains why each might be a potential problem for someone with a disability. It also offers suggestions on how to resolve each issue. Read more . NHS providers This term describes any organisation that provides NHS services. This includes hospitals, community trusts, GP services, pharmacies and clinical commissioning groups. NIHR or National Institute for Health and Care Research The National Institute for Health Research is funded by the Department of Health and Social Care. It funds health and care research, providing the people, facilities and technology for research to thrive. Patient and public involvement Research carried out ‘with’ or ‘by’ members of the public rather than ‘to’, ‘about’ or ‘for’ them. Members of the public can be involved at all stages of a research project and across all levels of research organisations. PhD award A PhD award is a research award which supports an individual to study for their doctorate. PPI Champions Our PPI Champions are members of the public. They have a strategic role in our organisation. This includes working closely with the leadership of one of our research themes and with our PPI/E team. We try to have two PPI Champions per research theme. PPI Officer Our PPI Officer is a member of staff dedicated to supporting good PPI/EP. PPI/EP An acronym for patient and public involvement engagement and participation. Used to describe work and projects which connect or encompass both activities. Population risk stratification and intervention to prevent childhood obesity This project aims to test the feasibility and acceptability of a childhood obesity prediction tool and online platform for health visitors to use when supporting families to lead healthier life styles. The involvement work will focus on working with the underserved, such as those from deprived or ethnic minority groups, who are most at risk of childhood obesity. Principal Investigator In studies or trials, this term is often used to describe the person who holds the research grant. They are the lead researcher for the project, Public Engagement in Research Unit This unit exists to inspire and support high quality public engagement with research across all disciplines at the University of Southampton. Public Policy Unit This unit, at the University of Southampton, helps researchers connect with policymakers to better support evidence-based policymaking. Socio economic status This term describes an individual's or family's economic and social position. It is a predictor of outcomes across the life span. Staff links Each theme has a nominated PPI/E staff link. This is a member of their research team. They are members of our strategic PPI/E group, APIF. Sure Start Sure Start is a government area-based initiative that was founded with the aim of 'giving children the best possible start in life' through improvement of childcare, early education, health and family support. Theme Public Advisors OurTheme Public Advisors are members of the public. They have a strategic role in our organisation. This includes working closely with the leadership of one of our research themes and with our PPIEP team. We try to have twoTheme Public Advisors per research theme. PPIOfficer Our PPIOfficer is a member of staff dedicated to supporting good PPIEP. Training Needs Analysis This is a process to determine all the training that needs to be completed (and when) to allow someone to complete their job as effectively as possible, as well as progress and grow. UK Standards for Public Involvement The standards are a framework for what good public involvement in research looks like. They provide clear, concise statements of effective public involvement against which improvement can be assessed. They were developed as a partnership of organisations across the UK, including the NIHR. Underserved Underserved is the term we have chosen to use to describe people who are less well included in research. We prefer this term because it highlights that the research community needs to provide a better service for these individuals. Wessex Wessex is the region covering Dorset, Hampshire, the Isle of Wight and South Wiltshire.

Ageing & Dementia Publications REMOTE-Neuro: co-produced recommendations to optimise remote neurology Fuller P, Fearn S, Dace S, Wollam A, Zarkali A, Cowan A, Mountney S, Carr G, Eriksson SH, Kipps C The COVID-19 pandemic necessitated a rapid shift to remote healthcare delivery. Despite historical concerns about the limitations of remote neurology appointments, increasing evidence indicates that remote appointments, when appropriately triaged, can be both safe and effective with clear advantages to patients, clinicians and the wider healthcare system. What remains unclear is how best to combine face-to-face (F2F), telephone, video and asynchronous communication in ways that optimise safety, equity and efficiency. Most existing studies are based on small samples from single centres and tend to present either the patient or clinician perspective. At UK national level, strategic initiatives such as Getting It Right First Time provide valuable and detailed service-wide recommendations for neurology. Broader programmes including the NHS Long-Term Plan, the Outpatient Recovery and Transformation Programme and the Topol Review promote digital innovation and more personalised outpatient care across the NHS. In parallel, WHO and NHS England endorse co-producing new models of care with service users. What is missing so far is a single framework to bring these strands together in a way that reflects the lived realities of those delivering and receiving remote neurology care. To address this gap, we synthesised three national surveys comprising over 3000 stakeholder perspectives and convened a series of iterative co-production workshops with patients, carers and healthcare professionals (HCPs). These workshops validated and enriched the national findings and informed a co-produced set of REcommendations for optimising Modality, Operational efficiency, Training and Equity in NEUROlogy (REMOTE-Neuro framework). By integrating lived experience with clinical insight at scale, the framework delivers practical and stakeholder-endorsed recommendations for optimising remote neurology care. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjno-2025-001518 April 2026 Ageing & Dementia Implementing a medication review and deprescribing intervention for older people living with frailty and polypharmacy in general practice: a feasibility study Radcliffe E, Kandala N, Sach T, Mccloskey S, Howard C, Sheikh C, Bradbury K, Latter S, Recio Saucedo A, Lown M, Brad L, Fraser SD, Ibrahim K Polypharmacy in older adults with frailty increases risks of adverse outcomes. Evidence supports proactive structured medication reviews (SMRs) for medicines optimisation, including deprescribing, however challenges exist in general practice. Polypharmacy (taking five or more regular medications on daily basis) affects nearly half of people in England aged 65 and over. Polypharmacy in older people is associated with increased potentially inappropriate medications (PIMs) leading to increased risk of falls, cognitive impairment, functional decline, hospital admission and death. In older people living with frailty medications harm can be amplified and can outweigh benefits or the known time to benefit exceeds projected life expectancy e.g. statins. Additionally, the goals of drug treatment in this population may change from reducing the risk of disease and prolonging life to reducing the burden of treatment and maintaining quality of life. Frailty may influence factors such as drug pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics, toxicity, and therapeutic efficacy. In turn, these factors may be involved in the development of frailty. Therefore, it has been recommended that people living with frailty and those with complex and problematic polypharmacy should receive a structured medication review (SMR) annually by their general practice team, specifically a clinical pharmacist referred to throughout as a ‘pharmacist’. An important aspect of SMR is deprescribing which involves tapering /dose reduction, stopping, or switching drugs with the goal of improving outcomes. Deprescribing has been shown to be feasible and safe across a wide range of conditions, medications, settings and with the use of different deprescribing tools. Deprescribing can lead to a reduction in polypharmacy and PIMs and for those living with frailty, can result in important benefits in relation to depression, function and frailty status. Implementing deprescribing in primary care can be challenging, but several facilitating factors have been identified. These include collaboration within well-integrated multidisciplinary teams (MDTs) with clear roles, where pharmacists lead with input from other professionals as needed. Effective digital and face-to-face communication, co-location, access to patient records, systems to identify high-risk patients, and use of tools to support SMRs further facilitate deprescribing. Face-to-face consultations are particularly valuable for discussing deprescribing, although communication should be tailored to patient and carer needs. Patient and carer education, shared decision-making, and trust in HCPs are also key facilitators. Clear plans for monitoring and follow-up after SMRs support continuity of care. Despite this growing evidence, no intervention has yet been developed and tested that integrates these facilitators and is feasible for implementation in routine primary care. To address this, a complex intervention to support medication review and deprescribing in primary care for older people living with frailty and polypharmacy was co-developed with key stakeholders, including patients, carers and health care professionals (HCPs) (MODIFY). This was achieved through three iterative stages of: reviewing the evidence; collecting and analysing primary qualitative data; and collaborating with stakeholders, guided by the principles of realist synthesis and the person-based approach. This paper presents the research conducted which aimed to assess the feasibility and acceptability of implementing the intervention in general practice among older people living with frailty, to inform a future substantive trial. https://doi.org/10.3399/bjgpo.2025.0175 Ageing & Dementia A European paramedic curriculum for geriatric emergency medicine developed via a modified Delphi technique Krohn JN, Barrett J, Heeren P, Lim S, Moloney E, Nickel CH, van Oppen J, Sandig N, Ünlü L, Singler K. Older emergency patients currently account for most European emergency medical service dispatches. Due to demographic changes and increasing comorbidities in advanced age, this number is expected to rise substantially in the coming years. Prehospital professionals require specialised training to provide high-quality care for complex, multimorbid patients. The aim of this study is to define minimum competencies for paramedic education in Europe on the management of emergencies in older adults. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13049-026-01550-3 January 2026 Ageing & Dementia Focussing on appetite decline to optimise management of undernutrition in later life- A geriatric medicine perspective Cox NJ, Jones L, Lim SE. Undernutrition is common amongst older people and can lead to adverse health outcomes and increased dependence. This review focuses on an aspect of undernutrition that is often overlooked, namely loss of appetite, and will discuss the challenges in this under-researched field from the perspective of geriatric medicine. Appetite decline is common in later life and predicts undernutrition in older populations. As such, timely identification and intervention on poor appetite could delay onset or progression of undernutrition to optimise healthy ageing and maintain independence. In addition, management of undernutrition ultimately requires the individual to meet their nutritional requirements. However, unless attention is paid to mitigating appetite decline, strategies to improve intake are likely to be ineffective. Treatment for appetite decline is challenging due to the multiple and complex underlying mechanisms. Current evidence is limited to a few trials targeting older people including flavour enhancement and fortification or supplementation, lifestyle measures such as increasing physical activity and social interaction, and medications, all with mixed results. Progress on treatments for appetite decline has been hampered by a lack of distinction from undernutrition, but also perhaps the approach to it as a concept. Categorising appetite decline in ageing as a geriatric syndrome could aid progress in the unification of approaches to mechanistic research, assessment and management strategies, which are likely to be most effective when in multi-component form and underpinned by the principles of Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment (CGA). https://doi.org/10.1017/s0029665125102115 January 2026 Ageing & Dementia An intervention to provide nutritional care for people living with dementia at home receiving home care (TOMATO): study protocol for a single-arm feasibility study Yinusa G, Surr C, Thomas S, Fenge LA, Howdon D, Major J, Heward M, Taylor G, Knight H, Townson J, Murphy J. In the UK, over 980,000 people are living with dementia, and two-thirds of them live in their own homes. Up to 60% of this population is estimated to be at risk of or already experiencing malnutrition, with 45% facing significant weight loss. As dementia progresses, ensuring that people eat and drink well becomes challenging. Many families affected by dementia access home care services, with home care professionals playing a vital role in supporting and enhancing overall quality of life. Training in identifying nutritional problems and supporting family carers to prevent malnutrition is an identified research need; however, research on the contribution of home care professionals in this area is limited. This study aims to assess the feasibility and acceptability of a nutritional intervention for people living with dementia receiving home care from the perspectives of people with dementia, family carers (dyads), and home care professionals (including home care managers). https://doi.org/10.1186/s40814-025-01722-5 November 2025 Ageing & Dementia The Importance of a Relationship-Centred Approach to Deprescribing for People with Dementia or Mild Cognitive Impairment in Primary Care: A Qualitative Study Andrews N, Brooks C, Amin J, Lim R, Board M, Latter S, Fraser S, Ibrahim K Polypharmacy (taking five or more regular medications) is common in people with dementia or mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and is associated with poor outcomes such as decline in cognitive and physical functioning, falls and hospital admission. Reducing or stopping unnecessary medications (deprescribing) can help improve outcomes but limited research has been undertaken with people with dementia or MCI, especially in primary care. This study explored the perspectives and experiences of people with dementia or MCI, informal carers and healthcare professionals on deprescribing decision-making in this setting https://doi.org/10.1177/14713012251376227 November 2025 Ageing & Dementia Potentially inappropriate prescribing and falls-risk increasing drugs in people who have experienced a fall; a systematic review and meta-analysis O'Reilly T, Gómez Lemus J, Booth L, Clyne B, McCarthy C, Ibrahim K, Thompson W, McAuliffe C, Moriarty F As certain medications increase risk of falls, it is important to review and optimise prescribing in those who have fallen to reduce risk of recurrent falls. The obective of this study was to systematically review evidence on the prevalence and types of potentially inappropriate prescribing (PIP), including falls-risk increasing drug (FRID) use, in fallers. A systematic search was conducted in July 2024 in MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL and Google Scholar using keywords for fall events, inappropriate prescribing and FRIDs. Observational studies (cohort, case-control, cross-sectional, before-after) and randomised trials were included. Studies were eligible where participants had experienced a fall and PIP (including FRID use) was reported. Random-effects meta-analyses were conducted to pool prevalence of inappropriate prescribing and mean number of inappropriate prescriptions across studies. https://doi.org/10.1093/ageing/afaf300 October 2025 Ageing & Dementia Implementing a digital physical activity intervention for older adults: a qualitative study. Boxall C, Dennison L, Miller S, Joseph J, Morton K, Corser J, Kesten J, Electicwala A, Western MJ, Lim S, Grimmett C, Yardley L, Bradbury K Physical activity (PA) in older adults can prevent, treat, or offset symptoms and deterioration from various health conditions and help maintain independence. However, most older adults are insufficiently active. Digital interventions have the potential for high reach at low cost. This paper reports on the implementation of "Active Lives," a digital intervention developed specifically for older adults. https://doi.org/10.2196/64953 October 2025 Ageing & Dementia Frail2Fit study: it was feasible and acceptable for volunteers to deliver a remote health intervention to older adults with frailty Meredith SJ, Holt L, Varkonyi-Sepp J, Bates A, Mackintosh KA, McNarry MA, Jack S, Murphy J, Grocott M, Lim S Approximately 47 % of older people in hospital aged over 65 are affected by frailty. Frailty is characterised by a cumulative decline in biological reserves leading to impaired homoeostatic recovery following stressor events. It is associated with increased risk of post-hospitalisation, disability, and mortality. Key interventions for frailty management and to address deconditioning post-hospitalisation include exercise, and nutrition support, underpinned by behaviour change strategies. However, in practice, access to models of care, such as multidisciplinary reablement services to support older people on discharge, is restricted by the health system’s capacity to deliver these services. This study aimed to explore the feasibility and acceptability of training volunteers to deliver a remote multimodal intervention, including exercise, behaviour change and nutrition guidance, for older people living with frailty after hospital discharge. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tjfa.2025.100092 October 2025 Ageing & Dementia Deprescribing Anticholinergic Medications in Hospitalised Older Adults: A Systematic Review Griffiths R, Lim S, Lin J, Bates A, Jones L, Ibrahim K. Anticholinergic medication use is increasing, particularly among older adults due to polypharmacy and comorbidities. High anticholinergic burden is linked to adverse outcomes such as reduced mobility and increased dementia risk. Acute hospital stays may offer an opportunity to address this often-overlooked issue. The aim of this study was to examine the effects of deprescribing anticholinergic medications on outcomes in older hospitalised patients. https://doi.org/10.1111/bcpt.70103 September 2025 Ageing & Dementia Treatment Considerations for Severe Osteoporosis in Older Adults See H, Gowling E, Boswell E, Aggarwal P, King K, Smith N, Lim S, Baxter M, Patel HP Osteoporosis, a chronic metabolic bone disease, increases the predisposition to fragility fractures and is associated with considerable morbidity, high health care cost as well as mortality. An elevation in the rate of incident fragility fractures will be observed proportional with the increase in the number of older people worldwide. Severe osteoporosis is currently defined as having a bone density determined by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry that is more than 2.5 standard deviations (SD) below the young adult mean with one or more past fractures due to osteoporosis. Nutrition, physical activity and adequate vitamin D are essential for optimal bone strength throughout life. Hormone (oestrogen/sex steroid) status is also a major determinant of bone health. This review explores mechanisms involved in bone homeostasis, followed by the assessment and management of severe osteoporosis, including an overview of several treatment options in older people that range from anti-resorptive to anabolic therapies. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40266-025-01205-5 April 2025 Ageing & Dementia Development of a complex multidisciplinary medication review and deprescribing intervention in primary care for older people living with frailty and polypharmacy Radcliffe E, Saucedo AR, Howard C, Sheikh C, Bradbury K, Rutter P, Latter S, Lown M, Brad L, Fraser SDS, Ibrahim K Reducing polypharmacy and overprescribing in older people living with frailty is challenging. Evidence suggests that this could be facilitated by structured medication review (SMR) and deprescribing processes involving the multidisciplinary team (MDT). This study aimed to develop an MDT SMR and deprescribing intervention in primary care for older people living with frailty. Intervention development was informed by the Medical Research Council framework for complex intervention and behaviour change and implementation theories. Intervention planning included: 1) a realist review of 28 papers that identified 33 context-mechanism-outcome configurations for successful MDT SMR and deprescribing in primary care, 2) a qualitative study with 26 healthcare professionals (HCPs), 13 older people with polypharmacy and their informal carers. The intervention's guiding principles were developed and intervention functions proposed, discussed and refined through an iterative process in four online co-design stakeholder workshops. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0319615 April 2025 Ageing & Dementia

Data Sets Machine learning methodologies are increasingly popular in health care research. This shift to integrated data science approaches necessitates professional development of the existing health care data analyst workforce. To enhance a smooth transition, educational resources need to be developed. Barriers to accessing real healthcare datasets, vital for health care data analyses methodologies training purposes, include financial, ethical and patient confidentiality concerns. Synthetic datasets mimicking real-world complexities offer a simpler solution. On this page, we present a synthetic dataset which mirrors routinely collected primary care data on heart attack and stroke among the adult population. The data incorporates much of the practical challenges encountered in routinely collected primary care systems such as missing data, informative censoring, interactions, variable irrelevance, and noise and can be used for training in methods which handle these difficulties. The intent is for the user to build models of heart/stroke risk using survival-based methodologies. By sharing this synthetic dataset openly, our goal is to contribute a transformative asset for professional training in health and social care data analysis. The dataset covers demographics, lifestyle variables, comorbidities, systolic blood pressure, hypertension treatment, family history of cardiovascular diseases, respiratory functioning, and experience of heart-attack and/or stroke. This initiative aims to bridge the gap in sophisticated healthcare datasets for training, fostering professional development of the health and social care research workforce. Development of this dataset was funded by ARC Wessex and the National Centre for Research Methods (NCRM). Synthetic Data set CSV cvd_synthetic_dataset_v0.2_metadata.xlsx

ARC qualitative network Aim The aim of the group is to encourage debate and discussion about the place of qualitative research in health research, its core concepts and methods in a dynamic and supportive atmosphere. The group is multidisciplinary with over 140 participants drawn mainly from di fferent faculties (Health Science, Medicine, Psychology, Sociology) and universities across Wessex, and some national and international participants. The group aims to be helpful and facilitate the use and development of qualitative research in health, illness and care. Participants The group is primarily concerned with providing a peer support network and the development of knowledge and skills of early and mid-career researchers who are conducting or interested in qualitative research. Frequency of meetings The group meets every 2-3 months to discuss a specific topic related to qualitative research, with selection of topic normally driven by the members and their interests and needs. Webinar 1 May 2020 - Qualitative Longitu dinal Research (QLR) - hosted by Dr Eloise Radcliffe, from the MacMillan Survivorship Research Group & Dr Meredith Tavener, University of Newcastle, Australia Webinar 8 July 2020 - Phone and online qualitative interviews - hosted by Dr Sofia Strommer and Dr Kinda Ibrahim Webinar 2 October 2020 - Teaching and Qualitative Research Webinar 11 February 2021 - Realist synthesis - Webinar by Dr Ivaylo Vassilev, Dr Alejandra Recio Saucedo & Dr Ksenia Kurbatskaya as part of ARC Qualitative Network Webinar 12 February 2021 - Realist Synthesis Exercise for Context, Mechanism and Outcome (CMO) configuration - with Dr Ivaylo Vassilev, Dr Alejandra Recio Saucedo & Dr Ksenia Kurbatskaya as part of the ARC Qualitative Research Network Webinar 19 March 2021 - Innovative ideas for Patient and Public Involvement (PPI) in qualitative research - March 19 2021 - Presented by Dr Caroline Barker (ARC PPI lead) and Carmel McGrath - Chaired by Dr Kinda Ibrahim (download copy of presentation) Webinar Friday 18 June, 2021 11.00am-12.30pm - How to conduct a systematic review and synthesis of qualitative studies - Speakers and researchers, Dr Teresa Corbett and Dr Kate Lippiett, who will share their recent experiences in conducting systematic reviews of qualitative studies, top tips and issues to avoid. (Download copy of presentation) Webinar December 8, 2021 - 1.00pm-2.30pm - Dr Kat Bradbury explain the value of using Qualitative Research in designing interventions - A Person Based Approach (Download a copy of presentation) Webinar March 29, 2022 - 1.00pm-2.00pm - Dr Sarah Fearn and Mrs Veena Agarwal Content analysis of interviews and surveys: Methodology and application (Download a copy of the presentation) Webinar April 28, 2022 - 11.00am-12.30pm -Dr Amanda Blatch-Jones and Dr Katie Meadmore share their experience of using netnography to explore funding committee practice allocation of research funding. (Download a copy of the presentation) Webinar June 9, 2022 - Professor Carl May presents “qualitative studies of innovations in treatment, organisations, and delivery of healthcare services: how the normalisation process theory coding manual can help?" Webinar October 6, 2022 -Dr Kate Lyle and Dr Susie Weller : Exploring the complexity of patient journeys: analysing, representing and communicating experiences through visual methods Webinar March 29, 2023 - download slides : WATCH: Video Reflexive Ethnography as a research and healthcare improvement tool – methodology and application. Webinar September 15, 2023: Watch:Decolonising qualitative research: Employing a critical cultural safety lens to address inequity and social justice Dr Elissa Elvidge Slides Webinar December 1, 2023: Watch: ARC Qualitative Research Network: Understanding Narratives Through Timeline Drawings. Webinar March 12, 2024: Watch: ARC Qualitative Network: Co-Production Webinar May 15, 2024: Watch: ARC Qualitative Network: Photo Elicitation Webinar September 2024: Watch: ARC Qualitative Network: Think Aloud Slides set 1 and Slide set 2 Webinar December 5 2024 - Using I-Poems for Deeper Insights in Qualitative Data Analysis Slides Using i-poems for deeper insights in qualitative data analysis - Lisa Ballard UoS Using I-Poems to extract the essence of a participant's experience - Chloe Langford Uos Webinar June 3 2025 - Qualitative Research Network - Digital Stories for enabling the voices of autistic children and young people to contribute to transitions in education, health and social care settings. Resources The group has developed a “MUST READ LIST” for qualitative researchers that include articles and books that discuss different areas including: challenges of conducting qualitative research; ensuring quality in qualitative research; the place of different methods of data collection; teaching qua litative research. We built this dedicated resource to help and advise people and we are constantly updating the list to include any further useful resources. If you would like to update the Must Read list email Jamie.stevenson@soton.ac.uk The group has also started building a resource of people with their expertise so members can identify at a glance the most suitable person(s) within the group to help, advise, and support on a particular topic. If you would like to add your details, please click here Group Convenor If you would like to know more about the group or interested in joining in please email Dr Kinda Ibrahim K.ibrahim@soton.ac.uk

Knowledge Mobilisation What is Knowledge Mobilisation (KM)? "It's about getting the right information to the right people in the right format at the right time - by actively collaborating" 1/6 These web pages are here to help share the learning our Knowledge Mobilisation Fellows are accumulating through our ARC Wessex Knowledge Mobilisation (KM) Programme. We will be developing this page into a hub of resources. Please get in touch with any questions and share your thoughts about KM via this email Click to jump to the section you want on this page KM Fellows - This is us KM Resources (in development) KM Action Learning Projects As part of a £7.8 Million investment from the NIHR in October 2024, ARC Wessex appointed a Knowledge Mobilisation team including four KM Fellows. ARC Wessex worked with Hampshire & Isle of Wight (HIoW) and Dorset Integrated Care Boards, provider organisations and Health Innovation Wessex to create a programme directly relevant to needs of patients, service users, carers and health and care systems. The programme is supported by an advisory group of stakeholders, which meets regularly and monitors the delivery of the programme’s objectives: Develop the capability of the KM fellows through increased awareness of training needs and tailored capability development programmes Deliver multiple Action Learning Projects to capture insights about KM practices and learning about what works or does not work to share more widely Develop a cohort of KM Practitioners across Wessex to support capability and capacity building with our partners and systems Actively contribute to ARC Greater Manchester national meetings and Communities of Practice to work in partnership cross-ARCs. This is us Knowledge Mobilisation Fellows Phillipa Darnton is our Implementation and Knowledge Mobilisation Lead Rachel Tobin is our Knowledge Mobilisation Programme Manager Dr Jenny Roddis is a Research Fellow and is an Associate Professor in Community Health at the University of Portsmouth Dr Kate Lippiet is a Senior Research Fellow based in the School of Health Sciences, University of Southampton Email the team at: arcwessex@soton.ac.uk Download the Knowledge Mobilisation poster This is our resources and tools section We are busy creating lots of useful tools and resources for you to download and they will appear here as we develop them, so keep an eye out. Please share your thoughts of KM and/or sign up to the KM mailing list using this form Download If you like our KM umbrella above you can download the image here by clicking the box to the left Download Download - 6 Ideas about KM - Steps to Good Action Learning Projects The KM Fellows are ‘learning by doing’ and documenting their findings as Action Learning Projects. Each fellow has their own projects in which they are trialling different KM activities to learn about what works in which circumstances. This learning will help them to build KM capability and capacity within the ARC Wessex health and social care research system. Current Mental health: learning from providing support to the ARC Wessex Mental Health Hub to adopt knowledge mobilisation strategies for selected projects. Skills and knowledge: identifying the skills and knowledge needed for good knowledge mobilisation and developing a national framework for KM professionals and researchers. Co-producing clinical academic pathways in Dorset. Working with knowledge and information services across Wessex to develop a knowledge mobilisation community of practice Mapping what influences decision-making and use of evidence in residential care and home care. Supporting care home staff to understand the current evidence base on dehydration risk assessment and apply this to the care home setting, with development of resources to support staff in this setting undertake robust evidence reviews. Completed Working with Hampshire and Isle of Wight Integrated Care Partnership to develop and deliver a research assembly. Understanding research priorities for care home and home care providers in Wessex.

Vikki Tweedy is an Advanced Nurse Practitioner (Dementia/Frailty) Dorset County Hospital NHS Foundation Trust - and is about to begin a PhD at Bournemouth University < Back Caring for the person with dementia in hospital Veterans and Dementia - why routines can matter Vikki Tweedy is an Advanced Nurse Practitioner (Dementia/Frailty) Dorset County Hospital NHS Foundation Trust - and is about to begin a PhD at Bournemouth University Dementia is a progressive condition affecting cognition, memory, and behaviour, with significant implications for individuals, families, and healthcare providers. Patients with dementia are highly vulnerable in hospital environments due to unfamiliar surroundings, disrupted routines, and communication difficulties. This can lead to increased anxiety, agitation, and a decline in physical and cognitive function. The traditional hospital model, which prioritises medical interventions over psychological and emotional well-being, often fails to meet their holistic needs. Therapeutic engagement involves structured, person-centred interactions that promote communication, emotional well-being, and cognitive stimulation. Rather than focusing solely on physical care, it aims to build trust, reduce distress, and enhance the overall hospital experience. While medical management is essential, therapeutic engagement and meaningful activity play a crucial role in improving patient well-being and hospital experience and here Dorset County Hospital NHS Foundation Trust the Dementia team have taken a proactive approach to try to address the personalised need for activity. Meaningful activity refers to engagement that holds personal significance to an individual. For people with dementia, maintaining a sense of routine and purpose through tailored activities can significantly enhance well-being. Through engagement with veterans with dementia in acute hospital setting, I have observed first hand how their military backgrounds influence their hospital experiences, responses to stress, and engagement with care teams. Meaningful activity is particularly relevant for veterans with dementia, whose unique life experiences, military backgrounds, and potential trauma histories require a tailored approach to care. Understanding their needs and providing structured engagement can help mitigate distress, improve outcomes, and foster a sense of purpose during hospitalisation. For veterans with dementia, the challenge of the hospital environment can be further compounded by their past experiences. Military training emphasises structure, discipline, and resilience, which may shape how veterans respond to hospitalisation. Additionally, some veterans may have underlying post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or other service-related mental health conditions that can influence their reactions to stress, noise, and certain interactions. Without appropriate engagement strategies, they may experience heightened distress, mistrust, or withdrawal. Having completed an NIHR internship (research initiation award), this gave me confidence and knowledge to want to pursue a clinical academic pathway and my work in this area has now led me to progress a proposal for a PhD, focusing on the lived experience of veterans with dementia in the acute hospital setting, further highlighting the importance of personalised, meaningful interventions in acute care settings. It is hoped that this research will contribute to improving care pathways for veterans with dementia, ensuring they receive hospital care that recognises and respects their unique needs. Therapeutic engagement and meaningful activity are essential components of high-quality dementia care in NHS acute hospitals. For veterans with dementia, recognising and integrating military-specific approaches can further enhance their hospital experience, reduce distress, and promote better outcomes. Embedding these principles into routine practice requires staff training, investment in resources, and collaboration with military support organisations. Here at Dorset County Hospital we have also been extremely fortunate to have been supported by the Royal British Legion who have provided us with some care packages to give to veterans in the hospital. The giving of the care packages by the dementia team was an excellent way to engage with patients about their military history but also to give the recognition to those who have served. Previous Next