Shared lives costs and effectiveness (SLEE)
- Principal investigator(s):
- Nadia Brookes, Lisa Callaghan
- Team:
- Nadia Brookes, Lisa Callaghan, Grace Collins, Sinead Palmer
- Start year:
- 2015
- End year:
- 2018
- Funder:
- NIHR SSCR2 via LSE
Shared Lives is a scheme where an individual who needs support, moves in with or regularly visits an approved Shared Lives carer with who they have been matched for compatibility. Whilst Shared Lives has had good results in Care Quality Commission inspections, it is under-researched. The Personal Social Services Research Unit (PSSRU) is conducting a study to explore whether Shared Lives is meeting the needs and improving the quality of life for service users who receive support, and if so under what circumstances and at what cost. The research will focus on adults with learning disabilities, older adults, adults with mental health issues and adults with a physical disability.
For new users of Shared Lives we want to measure changes in quality of life over time. We also hope to collect information from those suitable for referral to Shared Lives but who do not use it, to see how changes in their quality of life compare to those who do use Shared Lives. We will interview people using Shared Lives, as well as Shared Lives carers, about what is important to them in terms of quality of life, and the impact different needs and circumstances have on this. Researchers will gather administrative and cost information for economic evaluation purposes.