Ongoing research and research opportunities
Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Surveillance System (CAPSS)
CAPSS uses a process of active surveillance to support the epidemiological study of rare mental health disorders or events amongst children and adolescents across the United Kingdom and Ireland.
Other ongoing research projects
This study, conducted in collaboration with Imperial College London, employed a quantitative research methodology to assess the psychometric properties, namely acceptability, reliability, and validity, of a patient feedback questionnaire specifically developed to evaluate the quality of dementia care provided in hospitals.
What was involved
The questionnaire was originally developed by the National Audit of Dementia project team with patient and carer representatives and rolled out to hospitals in 2022.
By April 2024, 158 hospitals had participated and 4,954 responses were received.
We worked with a researcher at Imperial College London to understand how well the questionnaire worked as a tool to self-report on experience and care quality
Why was the questionnaire developed?
The National Audit of Dementia has run since 2010, examining the quality of care provided to people with dementia in hospital. There was no existing verified feedback tool available to use with this group of patients.
What did the study find?
Testing demonstrated that this tool showed effectiveness in measuring several care-related factors required to evaluate the quality of dementia care, with potential for broader use in future research, clinical evaluation, and policy assessment. These results have been reviewed as methodologically sound (as part of an MSc evaluation) and will be submitted to a peer-reviewed journal for publication.
Following evaluation, the questionnaire will be used in 2027 in the National Audit of Dementia data collection and results will be incorporated into national reporting.
Research opportunities
The Daphne Jackson Trust offers fellowships specifically designed to help researchers return to their careers after a break, combining a retraining programme with a research project hosted at RCPsych.
Find out more Daphne Jackson Trust Fellowship.
We work closely with the Healthcare Quality Improvement Partnership and NHS England to support the ethical use of data from the National Audits for extended outputs or research. We also collaborate on research using data from the networks, subject to a data access request.
If you would like to discuss a possible research project using CCQI audit or network data or qualitative research that is aligned with CCQI’s objectives, please contact Philippa.Nunn@RCPsych.ac.uk.